Letters

THE END OF THE NIGHTMARE

"The true silver lining in the impeachment cloud was that Congress was too preoccupied to screw up anything else." STEVEN H. JOHNSON Lakewood, Colo.

The impeachment scandal may be over [SPECIAL REPORT, Feb. 22], but its effects will go on eating at the very heart of the world's most powerful country. Maybe it's true, as Christian broadcaster James Dobson said, that Americans no longer recognize the nature of evil. Perhaps they see everything in shades of gray. This could prove to be the nation's downfall. But who cares so long as the U.S. economy is doing great? FERDINAND S. ROAQUIN Subic Bay, the Philippines

The bitter and bungling miscalculations of President Clinton's political foes made him look good. So good, in fact, one might ask, "With enemies like these, who needs friends?" JAMES KANTOR Bangor, Pa.

I'm still not sure what I was supposed to learn from the scandal. Was it that I need to be ashamed of my country? PATRICK QUINLAN Madison, Wis.

He got away with it. We let Clinton get off. There was lying under oath, coaching of witnesses, concealing of evidence and a subversion of the judicial system. If all this didn't amount at least to a high misdemeanor, what ever will? Now all the mendacious charmers out there will be looking for their chance. We have not seen the last of scoundrels with dazzling charisma. DUD GANN Cape Elizabeth, Maine

Clinton is not allowed to gloat, so we must do it for him. What fun! PAUL N. NASH Oakton, Va.

There is a fairly simple way to avoid future debacles like the one we experienced with the Clinton impeachment proceedings. A two-thirds vote in both bodies of Congress is required to pass a constitutional amendment. That same vote of two-thirds in both bodies should also be necessary for impeachment and removal. A simple majority in either house is inadequate. BERNARD W. FREEDMAN Laguna Hills, Calif.

President Clinton's acquittal proved to me that this affair was always largely a media feeding frenzy and not much more. The righteously indignant right is not as strong as it thought. And finally, the system does in fact work. GEORGE ADOMAVICIUS Cary, N.C.

This whole exercise was so flawed and dishonest that President Clinton carries no burden of shame at all. Nobody cares. The Republicans made first-prize idiots of themselves, and the media came in a close second. SYDNEY KAYE Cape Town

Bill Clinton, "The Comeback Cad"? LOUISE BAUGHAN MURDY Rock Hill, S.C.

The true heroes are Linda Tripp, the House managers and, most of all, Ken Starr. He put personal glory aside and did the difficult job he had to do. PETER A. OLSSON Keene, N.H.

It is said, where there is no shame, there is no honor. This would be an appropriate summation for this trial. GIOVANNI RACCUGLIA Guilford, Conn.

As an 85-year-old patriotic lady, I have lived long and seen much. When I watched Congress vote to acquit President Clinton, I realized that evil had won over good. My heart is broken. HELEN FLOYD Denver

CORRECTION

In our Verbatim section on the end of the impeachment trial [NOTEBOOK, Feb. 22], we attributed the quote "Go home; it's over; get a life" to the wrong Bennett. It was said by Utah Republican Senator Bob Bennett, not by Clinton attorney Bob Bennett.

STILL ANGRY TOO

After a year of being ignored, I feel liberated by Lance Morrow's commentary "Why I'm Still Angry" [VIEWPOINT, Feb. 22]. I too am no right-winger. I too voted for Clinton. And I too am filled with an unwholesome fury at his acquittal that has no place to go. Somehow, people like Morrow and me haven't been showing up in the all-powerful polls, but Morrow has validated the reality that we too are still here, our minds intact and our loss quite real. LYN A. GRIFFITHS Colorado Springs

I am still angry with Bill Clinton, because I no longer want to say to a child, "You can grow up to be President." RUTH NISSEN Beaverton, Ore.

SCHLESINGER'S ASSESSMENT

How will history judge Clinton? As long as people like Arthur Schlesinger Jr. write history [VIEWPOINT, Feb. 22], Clinton will be the victimized hero chased by the "wolf pack." In truth, Clinton is the wolf (dressed in white wool). But what do facts have to do with history these days? JOEL MARK SOLLIDAY New Haven, Conn.

Schlesinger criticized the "institutionalization of the prosecutorial culture" in our political life and took aim not only at independent counsels but also at inspectors general. Schlesinger blamed the latter for abridging "due process in their investigations" and said they "do their dirty work without serious accountability." He charged inspectors general with having created a culture in which "anonymous denunciations thrive." His unsupported criticisms reflect a lack of knowledge and do a grave disservice to inspectors general. Inspectors general root out waste, fraud and abuse and investigate misconduct. They do not have any independent power to prosecute but instead work with federal prosecutors on cases that are suitable for action. And they deal with anonymous denunciations the way any professional investigative agency does: they pursue allegations that have merit and reject those that do not. MICHAEL R. BROMWICH INSPECTOR GENERAL Department of Justice Washington

DINNER WITH JIANG

Norman Pearlstine's conversation with Chinese President Jiang Zemin [VIEWPOINT, Feb. 22] epitomizes the fundamental problem of contemporary Sino-American relations. Pearlstine gives too much credence to Jiang's diplomatic rhetoric. Until U.S. policymakers understand the actions of this regime and disregard Jiang's hypocritical diplomacy, Beijing's hegemonic agenda will continue to threaten the economic and security interests of free Asia and America. ARTIE MCCONNELL SENIOR RESEARCH ASSISTANT National Defense Council Foundation Alexandria, Va.

I was impressed with Pearlstine's account of his dinner with Jiang. It brought the problems facing China today clearly into focus. I agree that "the stronger China becomes economically, the better it will be" for both the U.S. and China. I hope that our representatives in Congress see the wisdom of these words. BILL CORBETT Centerville, Mass.

TINKY'S SEXUAL ORIENTATION

Come on! I'm not a Jerry Falwell devotee, but you made him sound like some kind of witch hunter in describing his conclusion that the Teletubby character Tinky Winky could be gay [NOTEBOOK, Feb. 22]. My daughter is almost two and a regular Teletubbies viewer. One of the first things I noticed when I watched with her was Tinky Winky and his "bag." Bag, schmag! It's a purse, complete with a clasp at the top, just like my grandmother used to carry. I'm not saying the creators were intending to create a gay character, but he is definitely a very different male creature from any we've seen on kids' shows before. DEBRA YEO Pasadena, Calif.

Why are folks like Falwell called far right when they're always out in left field? And why does anyone take these bozos so seriously? Maybe Falwell is jealous because the Teletubbies' creators make piles of money without having to threaten anybody with the jaws of hell. CHARLES GODWIN Davenport, Iowa

OPEN ADOPTION RECORDS

I was disappointed by your article on Oregon's Measure 58, which would give adoptees the right to see their birth certificate when they turn 21 [LAW, Feb. 22]. It was full of inaccuracies and wrongheaded assumptions. Measure 58 isn't about "tracking down" anybody. Most adoptees who wish to search already do so. The article included references to "kids" and "children" as if they would access their birth certificates. Measure 58 and other proposed open-records legislation would make files available only to adult adoptees.

Measure 58 is about dignity and justice. It is not about "open season" or "tracking down" anyone, both insulting hunting analogies. This is nothing revolutionary or extreme; it's the way adoption law stood for years before the failed social experiment of sealed records, which was founded on archaic notions of stigma, secrecy and shame. SHEA GRIMM, LEGISLATIVE CHAIR Bastard Nation Redmond, Wash.

What about the brave new medically created babies who are the product of purchased eggs or sperm? If there are laws allowing adoptees to have access to their birth parents, there should be access for all people to records of their biological parentage. I hope legislators keep these people's rights in mind. PEG LOPATA Francestown, N.H.

You left out the perspective of adoptive parents. They are required to jump through many legal and social hoops to adopt a child. When they get a child through legally binding adoptive procedures, they provide all the necessities of life that natural parents would. But what rights, courtesies and considerations are available to the adoptive parents? The possibly fragile foundation achieved by those adoptive parents through years of love and support may now be jeopardized by open adoption files. ROBERT ERDMANN San Diego

THEY WANT THEIR MP3!

Re your story on the free music available on the Internet [BUSINESS, Feb. 22]: I am a classical pianist and recently made the tracks from one of my CDs available for download at the MP3.com site. To some--especially those in the music industry--it looks as if musicians who provide tracks to MP3.com are giving away their music for nothing. But I look at the free downloads as being a lot like radio airplay and I get more exposure than I would on a local radio station. Online music distribution presents great opportunities to artists and listeners. The music industry exists to serve both, and if it fails to do so, it will die away--or be replaced by a new, different music industry more attuned to people's needs. BRENT HUGH Kansas City, Mo.

Your report "You've Got Music!" described MP3.com as a "major gateway for pirating." Though it may be convenient for TIME to paint MP3.com with the piracy brush, it is irresponsible to describe our website as a pirate portal. We have made a conscious, aggressive effort to allow only legal music content on our website. In fact, that is a major component of our business model. Our site provides valuable services for 5,500 artists and has only a negligible number of links to unauthorized content. DOUG REECE, SENIOR EDITOR MP3.com San Diego