BECK(ph): Relevant to now? I feel like we've got lots of white, male, gay heroes around here doing, like, lots of different things. I mean, we have tons of, like, gay elected officials, so it's something totally different now.</s>MELISSA BLOCK, host: Well, that comment provoked several emails, including this from Rick Evans(ph) of Kentucky. I am a straight white guy. But upon hearing young Beck's dismissal of Mr. Milk as irrelevant because there are openly gay politicians, I wanted to reach through the radio and smack her. It is akin to a young black person saying that Rosa Parks is irrelevant because of the existence of President-elect Obama or that the suffragettes are irrelevant because of the existence of Senator Hillary Clinton. None of these battles is won yet.</s>SIEGEL: Brian Flagger(ph) of Tallahassee echoed that sentiment. He writes, we honor those who made sacrifices and overcame obstacles in our American history, however big or small their contributions. The U.S. today is what the past has cumulatively made us. Harvey Milk's efforts are an important part of that history.</s>MELISSA BLOCK, host: Listener Meredith Leebow(ph) of Hermosa Beach, California, wrote about last night's report on medical repercussions of belly fat. She says, after listening, my evening commute took an unexpected detour, and I drove directly to the gym.</s>SIEGEL: Russ Irving(ph) of Manchester, Connecticut, did not appreciate our call for alternative acronyms for TARP, the Treasury Department's bailout plan, now that it has changed focus. He writes, whenever NPR tries its hand at comedy, we should be forewarned that it will be a dud. While the staff and commentators are slapping their knees, I am sitting by the radio, slapping my forehead. Please spare us the pain.</s>MELISSA BLOCK, host: Tell us how you really feel at npr.org. Click on "Contact Us." Please let us know where you're from and how you pronounce your name.
Listeners responded to the story on Harvey Milk's legacy, belly fat and alternative acronyms for the Treasury Department's TARP program.