Winds of War

To the Editors:

First there was Roots, then Shogun, and now The Winds of War [Feb. 7]. It is great to see a major network willing to risk $40 million to produce quality programming. My hat goes off to ABC for bringing history into our living rooms.

Stewart S. Dixon Jr. Lake Forest, Ill.

The picture of Robert Mitchum as he appears on your cover represents the finest example of how a military officer should look!

Laurence N. Freeman Houston

In 34 years of naval service, I have never seen a naval officer with his coat collar turned up like a journalist's. Pug also should have been wearing a white silk scarf. Otherwise it was a nice shot of Mitchum.

Kemp Tolley Rear Admiral, U.S.N. (ret.) Monkton, Md.

Your review spared me 18 hours of boredom.

William C. Singleman Newburgh, N. Y.

We hate war whether it is fought for religious or political reasons or whether it is hot or cold. Why, then, do we have to have special movies about it on TV?

James T. Nance Fort Worth

Mid-Term Message

President Reagan's State of the Union address [Feb. 7] shows that he has the courage of the public's convictions.

Leonard Greenberg Reston, Va.

The President's speech brings to mind all those "light at the end of the tunnel" talks we heard about the Viet Nam War. Then, as now, people were suffering in the meantime.

Harry Lenhart Saginaw, Mich.

President Reagan's remark about abolishing corporate income taxes, though retracted, reveals his shallow knowledge of economics as well as his personal bias toward the rich. With the nation suffering severe unemployment, he questions the justification for taxing corporations instead of proposing a constructive jobs program. Many companies already have an excessive concentration of wealth. Without corporate income taxes, the situation would become worse.

Edward L. Page Alexandria, Va.

Increasing taxes is one sure way to depress further the already weak economy and abort the incipient recovery. Taxing yourself out of a recession is like trying to borrow yourself out of debt. The result of more and higher taxes will be reduced revenues and even greater deficits. Additional tax cuts will do far more to stimulate the recovery.

Ray Cripps Dallas

In your article "New Tactics at Half Time" [Jan. 31] you state that the President can crow with justification because 1982's 3.9% rate of inflation is the smallest since 1972. This questionable achievement represents use of a longstanding option available to every American President, to control inflation by running the economy into recession. Thus recession, which mainly hurts the unemployed, has been substituted for inflation, which affects individuals in nearly every income category. One wonders what the future will bring as this shortsighted philosophy is applied to the full range of our social problems.

Stephen C. Casler Allegheny College Meadville, Pa.

Standing Pat

In the Essay "Consistency as a Minor Virtue" [Feb. 7] you apparently revere mutability as one of the most valuable aspects of the human mind and character. Ronald Reagan was elected by millions of Americans like me largely because of his avowed principles and the unwavering stand that he had demonstrated in supporting them. We still have tremendous social and economic problems in this country, but least among the causes is the President's consistency.

Laura A. Branch Tarrytown, N. Y.

Lily-White Cicero

Your article on racial discrimination in Cicero, Ill. [Feb. 7], made me question how much progress this country has made toward achieving justice for all. What have 2,000 years of Christian principles achieved if such bigotry and ignorance can persist? It is particularly distressing to see prejudice among people whose East European ancestors came to this country in search of the freedom and opportunity they now deny others.

James S. Borland Jr. St. Paul

Do those third-generation Americans in Cicero realize that those "colored people" and those "slant-eyed people" are probably fifth-and sixth-generation Americans?

Laverte McDonald Sioux City, Iowa

Why is Cicero being singled out as a racist town? There are certainly suburbs throughout the U.S. where blacks are excluded. Cicero is probably one of the few places where discrimination is not well hidden.

Roxy Fair Milwaukee

The Polish-American welder who stated, "I'll stand it [black infiltration] as long as I can, and then leave Cicero if I have to," is ignorant of the situation in the rest of the country. Where will he find another city devoid of blacks?

Stacee Cooper Dallas

It is ironic that an American community of East European lineage should overtly prevent other hard-working Americans from becoming good neighbors of equal status. The citizens of Cicero should contemplate where they would be today if their grandparents had been denied entrance into the U.S. because they were Czechs, Poles or Yugoslavs.

Bradford E. Lang Lafayette, Ind.

Borg's Exit

Bjorn Borg was a much needed counterbalance to the infantile personalities that seem to dominate the male side of tennis [Feb. 7]. Win or lose, Borg could be counted on to be gracious and dignified. He added both class and style to his sport.

Irene Kozlowski Chicago

Borg is lucky to have accomplished his life's ambition by the time he was 26 years old and to have at least twice that many years to enjoy it.

Jan Gordon Collins Grove City, Ohio

To describe Jimmy Connors as "a time-honored boor" is an insult to one whose humor and exciting play have been cheered by many aficionados of tennis.

Guy Lillian III Greensboro, N.C.

Papal Art

In your review of the Vatican collection that is now on exhibition in the U.S. [Feb. 14], your critic questions the "star quality" given every object and asks if the risk of moving these treasures is justified. In almost all of the Vatican museums even the most important works are never displayed as prima donnas. They blend, as they should, with the original centuries-old setting. Thus, to most visitors the individual qualities of the objects easily become lost.

In the current display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art each piece is enhanced by its isolation. Hence, for most viewers, the show becomes a unique opportunity to enjoy and absorb the beauty of each object and painting. Many of these people will one day come to the Vatican. Then will they understand the context they missed. More important, they will want to see more art. There is no doubt that for them the risk is amply justified.

Walter Persegati Secretary of the Museums Vatican City

Squealing on Sex

Laws like the "squeal rule," requiring federally supported clinics to notify parents when they give contraceptives to minors [Feb. 7], will widen the existing gap between parent and teenager. Girls who seek professional guidance should not have their privacy violated. It is far wiser to have a girl 16 and counseled than 16 and pregnant.

Patricia A. Hodder Bellerose, N. Y.

As a teenager, I was outraged to hear of the squeal rule. Most of my friends who are on birth-control pills received them through counseling at Government-funded clinics. Without the secrecy that was promised by the clinics, my best friends would have been added to the list of tragic stories of unwed mothers.

Kristin D. Merriman Boston

In a survey of sex and adolescents published in 1978, James Elias of Stanford found that mothers were a source of sexual information for only 10% of their sons and for 65% of their daughters. Fathers came in an abysmal second: 26% for their sons and only 2% for their daughters. That leaves approximately one-third of the females and two-thirds of the males without information from either parent. Since so many parents are delinquent in fulfilling their obligation, I question whether they have the right to be informed about the use of contraceptives by their children.

John D. Lawry Marymount College Tarrytown, N. Y.

High Tide

TIME overlooked the tide in its reporting of the storm damage along California's coast [Feb. 7]. A big factor contributing to water damage was the highest tide since record keeping began in the early 1920s. This rare flow was aided by the unusual and simultaneous occurrence of three astronomical events: 1) the earth was within days of its closest approach to the sun, the perihelion; 2) the moon was at its closest approach to the center of the earth, the perigee; and 3) the moon's and sun's gravitational pulls were in alignment at the full moon.

Winfield G. Wagener Sonora, Calif. This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so viewer discretion is required.