LETTER FROM
THE EDITOR
Honda Toru, a Japanese cultural
critic, feels these virtual relationships in fact offer a certain advantage, because they avoid the system of “love capitalism” — gifts
and dinners — that can harm reallife relationships. Anthropologist
Patrick Galbraith goes a step further: “I would say that a relationship with a LovePlus character is
a real relationship.”
Still, some aren’t quite at the
point where they’re willing to
forgo a real-life girlfriend. As
Theo Tkaczevski, a 23-year-old
American student who happens
to be dating Rinko, puts it, “I’m
personally of the opinion that
3-D easily beats 2-D.”
Elsewhere in the issue, Mallika Rao speaks to female conductor Sera Tokay about sexism in
the classical music world, which
gained attention last year after
a series of insensitive comments
from top male conductors in the
industry. Consider, for example,
Vasily Petrenko’s words — that
“a cute girl at the podium” is too
distracting. Or Yuri Temirnakov’s:
“The essence of the conductor’s
profession is strength. The essence of a woman is weakness.”
HUFFINGTON
02.16.14
Women, these men argue, simply aren’t suited for the field. “A
systematically dissuasive policy
against women,” Tokay tells Mallika, is used “as a proof of their
natural disability.”
I would say that
a relationship with a
LovePlus character is
a real relationship.”
In our Voices section, 29-yearold Elizabeth Scarboro gives a moving reflection on the surreal experience of life after being widowed.
“You feel your sense of purpose
deflating,” Scarboro writes. “When
you’re on an airplane, you no longer
have the thought that it can’t crash
because someone needs you.”
Finally, as part of our continued focus on The Third Metric,
we share the stories of six public
figures who are quiet at heart,
from Richard Branson to
Will Ferrell.
ARIANNA