A Letter From the Publisher

By Robert L. Miller

On many a Monday morning, when the first copies of TIME go on sale, I have paged through the magazine and felt the twinge of a missed opportunity. My letter to you in this space had mentioned a cover story, some other single article or member of our staff, but neglected half a dozen other pieces that were similarly distinctive. So I made myself a promise: This week I will write about stories that I am particularly proud of in this issue, until I run out of space.

My task was complicated by the course of events. We began the week with a different cover story in mind, but were struck by the sudden upsurge of debate over the highly emotional issue of whether drugs should be legalized. On Thursday we switched to the story that appears in the Nation section. It was reported by all our domestic bureaus and written by Senior Writer George Church. Accompanying the main story are examinations of the military's new role in the war on drugs and the Administration's "zero tolerance" campaign against drug consumers.

A few pages away in the World section is Washington Bureau Chief Strobe Talbott's inside account of how, after years of feints and frustrations, the U.S. and the Soviet Union have just about reached a strategic-arms-reduction agreement, an achievement that will be at the center of next week's Moscow summit. It is a tough subject, but one worth a few minutes' extra attention, and we don't think anyone can tell it better than Talbott, the author of two books on arms control. Not far beyond that story comes Profile, a department we introduced six months ago to provide word portraits of compelling personalities. This week's Profile, written by Washington Correspondent Ted Gup, is about North Carolina's often contentious, always colorful Senator Jesse Helms. Then there is the Design section, which showcases the work of Architects Gordon Bunshaft and Oscar Niemeyer, 1988 co-winners of the prestigious Pritzker Prize. Some stories can be told only in words, but this one must also be seen to be understood. The gallery of color photographs, accompanied by Contributor Kurt Andersen's description, catches the essence of the architects' accomplishments. Then there is the Technology section's look at a new generation of cameras, the Living story on women's clubs, the fascinating piece in Medicine about . . . I could go on. And on. But I have run out of space. Perhaps I will feel better this Monday.