Letters

A MOST DANGEROUS SEASON

"Leave it to us baby boomers to have helped elect for the country a President who wants to make love, not war." JOHN ALDRIDGE San Diego

I didn't vote for Bill Clinton, and I don't particularly like the job he has done [SPECIAL REPORT, Sept. 28], but I can't stand the self-righteous, "moral" persecution inflicted upon the nation's President by the Republican majority. All American citizens have an obligation to judge the morality of their representatives. The U.S. government does not, and should not, share that responsibility. CLAYTON TSCHUDY San Diego

Clinton seems determined to drag his supporters, his family, his office and the country through a long, painful process. If he had the moral courage to do the right thing, he would spare us this pain. He would resign. Perhaps, like Richard Nixon, he might eventually have a chance to earn a measure of our respect again. Unfortunately, resignation is not likely. This is not about sex; it is about moral courage, and President Clinton doesn't have it. RICHARD G. SMURTHWAITE Bountiful, Utah

Wanted: immaculate being, wholly without sin, to assume duties as President of the U.S. Applicants must understand that strict scrutiny will be enforced to ensure that purity is maintained at all times. The White House, including the residence area, will be electronically monitored. Regular interviews will be conducted with family, friends, lawyers, staff and bodyguards, under oath, to determine if any transgressions have been committed. Qualified candidates are welcome to submit their resumes to: Sin Squad Committee of the U.S. Congress, Washington. PATRICIA AUSTIN Elmira, N.Y.

My disappointment with President Clinton for his behavior in the White House is exceeded only by my anger at the Republicans in Congress for releasing grand jury testimony to the public. I haven't yet made up my mind whether Clinton should resign, but I am absolutely sure those hypocrites in the House of Representatives should be removed from office. NEIL CRAMER Santa Rosa, Calif.

These days the average American reacts to the news reports of Monica Lewinsky and the release of grand jury evidence with a channel change. Confessions of President Clinton? Turn the page. I can't wait for the November elections. It will be great to be rid of many members of the current Congress, end this investigation and get the nation back to business. MARY FREEMAN Berkeley, Calif.

Whether Clinton is impeached or not, censured or not, whether he resigns or stays in office, we must never, ever again allow a person like Clinton to occupy the office of President of the U.S. BRENT W. DAVIS Lancaster, Pa.

The national embarrassment over Clinton's behavior is due more to those who have made him a victim than to his own foolish actions. EDWARD L. PAGE Blue Hill, Maine

Either President Clinton and his cronies must go, or our country will. There are no other options. CHUCK BURGE Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

I am concerned about the growing trend to demonize Ken Starr. I too am appalled at the content of the evening news. However, I do not blame Starr for unearthing this scandal. I blame the President for his actions. It is clear that Clinton lacks the wisdom to run his own life, let alone the life of this country. Starr was just doing his job. KRISTI STOUGHTON Hudson, N.H.

The turmoil caused by Clinton, Ken Starr and Henry Hyde's band of cowboys has resulted in more weakening, discord, divisiveness and pain in our government and the U.S. than any number of terrorist attacks. BO NEWELL Nellysford, Va.

Maybe Clinton's place in history will not be the greatest. We can only guess. On the other hand, the place in history of the people who kept this entire investigation going for so long won't be so great either. Shame on us! BILLY WETTERER Wood River, Neb.

There is one simple reason why we put up with Clinton: the right-wing radio wackos. We deplore what Clinton did, but when we hear the hatemongers on the radio, we know that Clinton's survival is better for America than success for the Clinton bashers! The Rush Limbaugh imitators are actually helping prop up a flawed President. RICHARD J. ORLOSKI Allentown, Pa.

From Slick Willie in Arkansas to Shifty Willie in his grand jury testimony--let us hope that Clinton becomes Swift Willie, out of the White House. Now! JOSEPH EDMOND BOURQUE Honolulu

What does the ease with which Lewinsky was shuttled in and out of the Oval Office say about the security of the White House? Not much! MARIAN MAIB Holiday Island, Ark.

You should change the name of your magazine to Wasting Time. If I wanted to obsess over trash, I'd go out and buy the National Enquirer. SONIA DELGADILLO San Francisco

Clinton's testimony to the grand jury was very disappointing to me. I felt dizzy after watching him dance around the questions presented to him. I am tired of the legal hairsplitting; why can't he just answer directly? I cannot believe that I have a better memory than the leader of the free world. That is scary. JOHN HUTCHINSON Sterling Heights, Mich.

DIFFERENT KINDS OF PUNISHMENT

If impeachment is too severe a penalty for Clinton and censure too mild, why not consider flogging, Singapore-style? Perhaps one lash for each liaison with Lewinsky might be appropriate. Hillary could administer the punishment, and if it were on pay-per-view TV, enough revenue could be generated to reimburse the long-suffering taxpayer for the cost of the Starr investigation. STANLEY SAPERSTEIN Encino, Calif.

It is time for Clinton and Congress to make a deal. In exchange for dropping impeachment proceedings, the President would agree to wear Sam Donaldson's toupee for the remainder of his term. Harsh, perhaps, but it should satisfy fair-minded people, and will definitely curtail Clinton's romantic appeal. KEVIN MEEHAN Washington

WHAT THE POLLS MEAN

It is curious that polls show Americans heartily approve of the job Clinton is doing as President despite his conduct behind closed doors. But the American public is sending a message: As long as we make a lot of money, the character of the people leading us to the Valley of Plenty doesn't matter. JEREMIAH R. COLE Highland Heights, Ky.

A PYREX VICTORY?

Clinton has disappointed me, Starr has angered me, Tripp has disgusted me, and Lewinsky has embarrassed me, but it took Charles Krauthammer to really tick me off [ESSAY, Sept. 28]. His commentary "Clinton's Pyrrhic Victory" implies that the two-thirds of the American public who support Clinton are mindless sheep, being pushed willy-nilly by pollsters and incapable of independent judgment. Bill Clinton has not somehow won me over with lies and manipulation; I never thought his personal character was without blemish. What he has done is the job we chose him to do, and overall he's done it superbly. Despite what Krauthammer says, Clinton's victory may turn out to be less Pyrrhic than Pyrex--long-lasting and heat-proof. HILDA GRANT JONES Hallowell, Maine

HILLARY IS SENDING A MESSAGE

In a sense Hillary Clinton sets a standard, dictating how modern American women will be expected to behave in circumstances similar to hers. If she stays with Bill Clinton, she sends a message that it's normal for men in power to chase girls and that it's proper to stand by your husband regardless of his lies. By staying, Hillary indicates that women should put up with the kind of contempt Clinton has shown. Leaving would demonstrate that women are no longer willing to be married to self-obsessed little boys who don't know how to keep their pants zipped up. LETITIA MEYNELL London, Ont.

COMPARING CLINTON TO LINCOLN

Mindful of Clinton's image in presidential history, I offer this view of how he will be remembered alongside Abraham Lincoln in American history books: Lincoln is forever celebrated for his Gettysburg Address; Clinton will be forever linked to the Lewinsky dress. Lincoln was the Great Emancipator; Clinton will be the Great Prevaricator. When we think of Lincoln, the phrase "Honest Abe" comes to mind; for Clinton, it will be "Honestly, Bill!" PETER DZWONKOSKI Rochester, N.Y.

FRASIER IS A RARE SHOW

How can James Collins even question the merits of Frasier [TELEVISION, Sept. 28]? Record-breaking Emmy history is pretty reliable evidence that this show is a rare species and one that, I hope, will thrive for a long, long time. There's very little on TV that impresses me, but I'll put the pedal to the metal to get home in time to see Frasier. The characters are eccentric and complex, the actors superb, the writers the wittiest bunch ever called into service in TV land, and each episode is more brilliantly structured than the last. I think there should be no question about this show's ability to crush every upstart and retread for five seasons running. Survival of the fittest, I'd say. HOLLIS ASHBY Pacifica, Calif.

MUSLIM POLITICAL ACTIVISM

Why title your article "The Sword of Islam," and why use the metaphor of Pakistani rulers "waving the scimitar of Islam" [WORLD, Sept. 28], unless the intent is to portray all forms of Muslim political activism as stridently militant? It is wrong to perpetuate such crude stereotypes. Pakistan is a country in which a politically and religiously diverse populace is struggling for its survival in the face of many serious challenges. You could have given your readers probing insights into how the country is faring on all these fronts and how the different political appeals to so-called Islam are being employed. Instead, we got a superficial and biased article about another poor, backward Muslim country plagued by the scourge of religious fanaticism. SCOTT C. ALEXANDER Assistant Professor of Islamic Studies Indiana University Bloomington, Ind.

Such groups as the Taliban and the overzealous mullahs in Pakistan are correctly labeled as "extremist" but should not be referred to as "fundamentalist" or supporters of "undiluted Islamic law." True Islamic law, taken as a complete system--not the biased and distorted fragments handpicked by the media--outlines a profoundly moderate, logical and equitable life-style applicable to all. NAVID RASHID Washington

MUSIC AND THE INTERNET

Your article "Free Music Online" [PERSONAL TIME: YOUR TECHNOLOGY, Sept. 21] was a shock. It clearly implied that pirating music off the Internet is O.K. It is not. It is theft, pure and simple. Providing, as you have, a "how-to" guide compounds the offense by giving the weak and misguided a rationale for their infringements: "Hey, everyone is doing it. I learned how in TIME magazine." You really should know better. PETER R. HAJE, Executive Vice President and General Counsel Time Warner Inc. New York City

CLASH OVER REDWOODS

How sad and distressing to read of the latest transgressions against the environment and the death of young activist David Chain while he was attempting to save the redwoods in California [ENVIRONMENT, Sept. 28]. The most basic disagreement between the environmental movements and the business community continues to be the rights of landowners and companies to profit from their investments vs. the need to protect and preserve the source of those profits. I consider myself an environmentalist, but until we find a way to make the environment an economic issue, we'll never be able to battle the lure of economic gain derived from its riches. When the Sierra Club, Greenpeace and the rest can "sell" the environment to the business world, my kids just may have a world left that is fit to live in. STEVE WEST Nashville, Tenn.

You described the final bill the California legislature approved to authorize the purchase of the 7,500-acre Headwaters Forest from the Pacific Lumber Co. as "the Deal." However, you overlooked a number of significant improvements California made to the Deal, compared with what had been negotiated over the past two years. This legislation requires Pacific Lumber to set aside, for 50 years, an additional 7,000 acres of ancient redwoods that will be off limits to all logging and protected as habitat for the threatened marbled murrelet. The company is also required to set aside an additional 11,000 acres in no-cut buffers next to streams critical to the survival of the endangered coho salmon. It is unfortunate that you characterized what we achieved as saving a few "scraps" of wildlife habitat. BYRON SHER, State Senator Co-Chair, Joint Committee on Headwaters Forest California Legislature Sacramento, Calif.

Chain's death in a skirmish to save a 40-ft. redwood was murder, plain, pure and simple. A compassionate person was sacrificed at the altar of human greed. What incredible arrogance and ignorance. But these two qualities do seem to go hand in hand, don't they? CAROLYN AND DAVE CANOY Salem, Ore.

Your article was totally one-sided and heavily antilogging. I find the statement that "a clear-cut leaves a sharp demarcation line between a woodland full of life and a biological ruin" complete nonsense. As a hunter, I know that the place in a forest to find the largest concentration of all manner of critters is in the regrowth that occurs in burns and clear-cuts. Inasmuch as we seldom let fire do its work in the forest, we are probably doing diversity a favor by selective logging and clear-cutting! DALE ROSS Ashland, Ore.

TUTTLE TO THE RESCUE

Finally a breath of fresh air and humor. I am referring to your report on Vermont Republican Senate candidate Fred Tuttle, 79, who spent a total of $200 to win the primary [NATION, Sept. 28]. The man is whole and witty! I loved it all. Hail, Fred Tuttle! FREDERIC A NASSAUX Southfield, Mich.

I was born just up the road from Tuttle, and although I have lived elsewhere most of my adult life, I am a Vermonter to the core and am cheering for Fred. But I'm also cheering for Democratic incumbent Pat Leahy, whose good sense and honesty set him apart from the general run of politicians. Fortunately, both guys will win: Leahy will win the election for Senate, and Fred will win our hearts. And the movie Man with a Plan, which provided the scenario for Tuttle's campaign, wins too by satirizing the incredible insanity of U.S. campaign finance. ROBERTA BICKNELL PIPER Murphysboro, Ill.

CORRECTION

Our report on Fred Tuttle's Senate primary victory mistakenly said his opponent Jack McMullen had not conceded the race. McMullen did concede privately to Tuttle on the night of the primary.