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Letters: Apr. 4, 2005

6 minute read
DEPARTMENT

“Thanks for bringing this to our attention. Â We should take stock of how much we can afford to give to those who truly need our help.”

TONY PATTON Encinitas, Calif.

Your excerpt from Jeffrey D. Sachs’ book on how to end global poverty [March 14] brought me to tears of outrage and sorrow over the tragic plight of the world’s poorest. But I was saddened even more by the stinginess and lack of empathy that the U.S. has continually shown. For all the talk about Christian values, the U.S. has failed dismally to respond to the desperate needs of the poorest of Christ’s brethren by being the most tightfisted among the rich donor nations. What an absolute shame!

CHEERS ECHEVARRIA-LEARY Albany, Calif.

I have always been deeply grieved by the situation in Africa, but I resent the bleeding-heart bias of Sachs’ book. No one forces people in poor countries into the irresponsible sexual behavior that leads to AIDS and neglected, even orphaned children. So what if the U.S. gives so little aid to the poor? Other nations also contribute funds. At any rate, money is not the answer.

CINDY CLARK Decatur, Ga.

After finishing the article on poverty, I felt ashamed. I’ve always thought of myself as not the typical self-absorbed teenager, but I guess I was wrong. While I sit in my large, warm and cozy house, wishing for the shoes and clothes I see in teen magazines, there are people in the world wishing for something as simple as clean water. Thank you for reminding me about people who would be more than happy with what I have.

ANKITA AGARWAL Omaha, Neb.

That was the best, most informative and perhaps most useful piece of journalism I have seen in years. For far too long, Americans have uncritically accepted inaccurate arguments and sound-bite explanations for what is unquestionably the most serious problem facing our future. Environmental destruction, terrorism and a host of other problems are rooted in world poverty, but sadly we pretend there is nothing that can be done. I commend your magazine for providing informed, well-written and easily understandable arguments to help dispel those illusions. Well done!

STEPHEN E. KAUFFMAN Devon, Pa.

Judging the Bush Doctrine

Columnist Charles Krauthammer’s “Three Cheers for the Bush Doctrine” [March 14] was narrow-minded and premature. We can’t judge at this early stage whether democracy will take hold in the Middle East. Terrorism is on the rise. We have alienated our allies. At home we are cutting funding for basic programs. I for one am not cheering.

DANNY BOYER Mill Valley, Calif.

Never have I felt such pride. Â President Bush’s policy for finding a long-term solution to Islamic terrorism and for promoting peace in the Middle East was a spark for democracy throughout the region. I’m proud of our President.

CHRIS SCIBELLI Los Angeles

Breast-Feeding Guidelines

The “Your Time: Health” column “Baby Bulletins” [March 7] erroneously indicated that the American Academy of Pediatrics (A.A.P.) has revised its guidelines on breast feeding and concluded that it is O.K. to sleep in the same bed with your baby. The recently published breast-feeding policy statement contains no such recommendation, nor does the A.A.P. advise that. We use the phrase “sleeping in proximity to,” not “in the same bed with,” your baby. We advise that so the mother can respond promptly to an infant’s hunger. You also incorrectly implied that the A.A.P. supports the use of “a formula supplement … for underweight babies.” No such recommendation is contained in the policy statement.

LAWRENCE M. GARTNER, M.D. CHAIR, SECTION ON BREASTFEEDING AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS Valley Center, Calif.

Support for Assad

In his interview with Syrian President Bashar Assad [March 14], Joe Klein reported that Assad “evaded the question of closing Palestinian ‘rejectionist’ group offices in Damascus.” What is Assad supposed to do? Free speech requires that all views, however unwelcome, be allowed expression. Assad strikes me as a decent man doing his best in impossible circumstances. We could push him harder, but we would do better to support him.

NOEL FALCONER Couiza, France

Surprise Party

In your interview with Mahmoud Abbas [March 14], the Palestinian President argued that Hamas should be seen as a political party, like Israel’s “more than 33 political parties from right to left and in between.” The very huge difference is that none of Israel’s political parties have a militia to intimidate their foes and conduct terrorist attacks. Until the government of the Palestinian Authority has a monopoly on the use of force in the territory it is supposed to control, Israel has no real Palestinian partner for peace.

ED FEUER Winnipeg, Canada

Math, Science and Women

Harvard President Lawrence Summers is being punished in the name of political correctness for his ideas on male and female brains [March 7]. But the controversy isn’t about whether a theory is right or wrong. It’s about whether academic freedom is at risk.

MARY L. MITCHELL Toronto

Thank you for addressing the issue of brain differences and women’s performance in the fields of science and math. It should be obvious that we need to change the presumptuous opinion that girls are not interested in science and math. That prejudice still exists throughout the Western world, manifesting itself as girls and boys grow up and resulting in less interest in science among women. I had an unusual experience in that all but one of my math and science teachers from kindergarten through high school were women. They provided direct evidence to me that women could excel in math and science. I only hope that more girls will be sufficiently provoked by prejudice to prove the common notion wrong. Women make just as good engineers, physicists and science professors as men.

LOUISE BARKHUUS, RESEARCH FELLOW UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOW DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTING SCIENCE Glasgow

The article on gender differences stated that the separate parts of a woman’s brain are generally “more interlinked.” Would that enhance a knack for multitasking? As an experiment, I continued reading the article while at the same time dictating, at typing speed, a passage to my husband from a poorly photocopied document that he needed to include in a project he was working on. When the task was completed, I could remember most of what I had read, but he complained about my slow and rather erratic dictation rhythm. We both agreed, however, that he would not have been able to do those two things at once, quickly or slowly, erratically or smoothly.

JO-MARIE CLAASSEN Stellenbosch, South Africa

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