Inbox

What’s in Store for ’07
In your discussion on the upcoming French presidential elections in the What’s Next package [March 19], you neglected to mention the role of François Bayrou, the popular leader of the Union for French Democracy and former Education Minister. He has been rising in the polls more rapidly than Nicolas Sarkozy and Ségolène Royal and is positioned to determine who will be France’s next President. He will be able to sway votes to either Sarkozy or Royal — or even become Jacques Chirac’s successor.
Michael Bayer, NEW YORK CITY

Re “Rise of the religious left”: why was there no mention of John Edwards? Edwards has made eliminating poverty and helping working families his top priorities. He was director of the Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity at the University of North Carolina and has established One Corps to organize grassroots efforts to help the needy. While Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama frequently mention their faith, Edwards is quietly living his.
Kathy Callan, PALO CEDRO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.

The religious left may now see an opportunity to flex its muscles in the 2008 presidential campaign, but the religious left is hardly a new phenomenon. Most Americans are probably familiar with the following names: Daniel and Philip Berrigan, Robert Drinan, William Sloane Coffin, Paul Moore, Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton.
Evan Edwards, NEW YORK CITY

Re the report on compact fluorescent lightbulbs (cfls): I own two hybrid vehicles and am as green as anyone, but I don’t encourage rushing out to replace incandescent lightbulbs. A cfl may consume 75% less energy to generate the equivalent light, but my furnace has to make up for the heat no longer provided by the incandescent bulb. Since there are also disposal issues (cfls contain mercury), I suggest that cfls be used only in the refrigerator.
Richard Wilhelm, PORT ANGELES, WASHINGTON, U.S.

Richard Lacayo remarked that architecture has become “practically as glamorously daredevil as bullfighting.” But bullfighting is certainly not glamorous for the bull, which is destined to die in a hideous, cruel manner, nor is it daredevil for the coward who wields the swords. Any way you look at it, bullfighting is not a good comparison for great architecture.
Joyce Janicki, ST CLAIR SHORES, MICHIGAN, U.S.

Spotlight on the Vice President
When I saw your story on Vice President Dick Cheney [March 19], I thought I would be reading an informative and factual piece. Instead, I pored over an opinion piece with a number of unattributed quotes, more condemnation of the President and the Iraq war and a diatribe against I. Lewis (Scooter) Libby.
Tom Tock, DWIGHT, ILLINOIS, U.S.

Your story claimed that President George W. Bush chose Cheney as his running mate. Have you already forgotten that Cheney chose himself? Cheney has been running the show ever since, not sock puppet Bush.
John Lovejoy, LEBABON, OREGON, U.S.

Duffy is right: the libby trial has shown that Cheney’s overbearing style has become one of the Administration’s biggest problems. He should be dismissed like Rumsfeld. Shed no tears for Cheney!
Hussain Syed, BROSSARD, CANADA

Upon reading Michael Duffy’s “Cheney in Twilight,” I realize how out of touch the media seem to be. I am no fan of Cheney’s, but his vice presidency has been a political footnote. Only the media are hyping the Libby story. Compared with the scandals of the Clinton Administration, this one seems mild. It’s barely a blip on most Americans’ radar screen.
Ed Lybrook, CINCINNATI, OHIO, U.S.

I like Bush, but there’s no doubt that having Cheney in the Administration was an even bigger mistake than hiring former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Long gone are the days when a Vice President only attended funerals and did not cause them — so many of them. Libby (now Fibby) has been ruined playing a dangerous game for the VP and losing. Halliburton is moving to Dubai. Let’s hope the company takes Cheney along.
Mel Maurer, WESTLAKE, OHIO, U.S.

Hope Lives in Ghana
I enjoyed reading Simon Robinson’s wonderfully descriptive article about the hopes and disappointments of the Deh family of Ghana [March 5]. I am a Tanzanian of East Indian ancestry, and I believe that Africa has a lot of potential, not only in its vast natural resources, space and beauty but also in its young people, such as 18-year-old Delight Kofi Aka Deh. If this potential could be harnessed by democracy (the best antidote to tribalism) and the economic freedom of private enterprise, Africa could be the next economic success story, even a miracle.
Ashok Sharma, FLINTRIDGE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.

I was glad to see a nuanced portrayal of Africa rather than the clichéd depiction we often see. Your article was honest because at the center it was a human story. Having lived in Ghana’s Volta region, I recognized in the Deh family’s story the tales of many people I know. I hope the article reminds readers of our common humanity. The people of Ghana are friendly and full of life. We cannot write off an entire continent. It is possible to have hope.
Rachel Tyler, SUDBURY, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.

Your report captured the essence of a continent’s conundrum. Delight Deh is the embodiment of the African whose hopes and dreams are incessantly shuttered by the archetypal African Big Man, such as Presidents Yoweri Museveni of Uganda and Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe. My prayers go out for Delight. He is full of promise.
Henry Mukasa, SHARON, MASSACHUSSETTS, U.S.

It is heartening to be reminded that though [Kwame] Nkrumah fell short of realizing his dreams, Ghana is still a leader on the continent. Remember that Africa cherishes Nkrumah’s overarching dreams, despite his errors. Africa is now on more solid ground, not only because Africans have been dreaming but also because we have been conscientiously and systematically working. You’d better believe it.
Tordue Salem, ABUJA, NIGERIA

War in High Res
In his review of the movie 300 [March 12] Lev Grossman wrote, “The Spartans were sick, scary fighters, brutally trained from childhood, the ancient equivalent of special forces.” He should have stuck to the subject of his review without making backhanded insults about members of the armed forces. Grossman also called director Zack Snyder a “dork” for having read a comic book about the Battle of Thermopylae. Professional warriors in our armed forces read Thucydides, Clausewitz, Sun Tzu and Herodotus. I challenge Grossman to call those members of our military dorks.
Walt Stachowicz, INVERNESS, FLORIDA, U.S.

Your article on the film 300 quoted the actress Lena Headey as saying “Zack would go, ‘Come and see this stage!’ And we’d go, and there’d be, like, a rock. And we’d be like, ‘Has he taken acid this morning? Or what’s he looking at?'” And later, from the same actress: “You don’t have any emotional props. You can’t do this thing of ‘Oooh, I’m going to sit on this chair because I feel sad now.'” Did you have to inflict this gobbledygook on us? Couldn’t you have paraphrased it and spared us the pain of reading it?
Lyle McClure, ISTANBUL

I take exception to the comment that 300 “stars nobody in particular.” Gerard Butler, who plays King Leonidas, also appeared in the 2004 movie The Phantom of the Opera, a role that showcased his vocal talent. To prepare for 300, Butler went through weeks of strength training so he could portray the Spartan warrior, which your article dismissed as nothing more than “Hollywood pretty boys” bulking up. I saw 300 the day after its March 9 opening and thoroughly enjoyed both the visual effects and the acting.
Judi Ross, NILES, MICHIGAN, U.S.

Juiced for WebTV
The coming Joost revolution, led by Skype veterans Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom, may move TV to the Internet, but that is no reason to call Microsoft’s popular WebTV service, which does the opposite, a dud [March 12]. Of Joost, Jeremy Caplan said, “Simplicity is the magic,” but nothing is simpler than WebTV. Sure, Microsoft dropped the ball by discontinuing WebTV. But we old-timers — I am almost 83 — love it.

Lloyd Saletan, NEW YORK CITY

Enduring Faith
Your report on James Cameron’s documentary The Lost Tomb of Jesus and books that challenge the Resurrection referred to “a more speculative style of scholarship” [March 12]. This is not about Christianity bashing, by either those in Hollywood or anyone else. It is merely the presentation of evidence that invites enlightened discussion. Although the dogma of the physical Resurrection might be called into question, faith in Jesus and belief in his teachings should not be threatened by new findings.
Richard Miller, NEW YORK CITY

The argument over producer James Cameron’s The Lost Tomb of Jesus is irrelevant. Christ may or may not have ascended bodily to his father in heaven, but whoever he was and whatever his family life may have been like, his presence in the world changed history and countless lives from the 1st century to the present.
Margaret Millea, CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA, U.S.

Preaching Tolerance
Re your report about the age-old divide between Sunnis and Shi’ites [March 12]: It never ceases to amaze me that people kill one another over trivial religious differences. Religious wars will be with us for a very long time. Isn’t the Shi’ite-Sunni battle the same religious trivia as the Northern Ireland Protestant-Catholic mess that has been going on for so many years? How could these issues be so important that one can kill one’s neighbor over them?
Jeff White, KILCHBERG, SWITZERLAND

I wish the title of your story had read “Why They Kill Each Other” instead of “Why They Hate Each Other.” I am a Shi’ite Muslim, and I do not hate Sunnis. Millions of Sunnis and Shi’ites are like me. We are the silent majority. Ignorance and intolerance have helped ignite old dormant prejudices and led to sectarian and hatred killings. Provided that regional political and military troubles are resolved, it will take generations and new systems of education to make religious and political leaders preach progress, tolerance, care and love among all human beings, whether they are Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Hindu or of any other faith.
Nagi S. El Saghir, BEIRUT

Iraq’s muslims need to study Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels to learn about the folly of using differences to divide people. All Muslims should forget about succession from Muhammad and simply be good Muslims. And good Muslims don’t slaughter one another. When people aren’t taught to respect other teachings, religions, cultures and civilizations, they aren’t inclined to respect the sanctity of life — not even their own.
Zell Goodbaum, TORONTO

Mutual Understanding
I was shocked to read Peter Beinart’s Viewpoint “The Devil We Know” [March 5]. The strategic U.S.-Saudi relationship has been a success, but Beinart made no reference to Saudi Arabia’s positive contributions. Over the past several decades, our countries’ partnership has stabilized the world economy by securing oil supplies, contained communist regimes, defeated Saddam Hussein and fought terrorism. Saudi Arabia is a balancing power against radical forces that are driving the region back to the Dark Ages.
Khalid Al-Saeed, RIYADH

Universal Space Travel?
One of the silliest prophecies I’ve ever read was in “The Space Cowboys” [March 5]. Aeronautical engineer Burt Rutan said, “Fifteen years from now, every kid will know he can go to orbit in his lifetime.” Even the kids in Ghana portrayed in the same issue? And where is the fuel to come from? Surely there are better uses for the world’s dwindling energy resources.
Lars Sollin, lund, sweden

Front Runners Lacking Luster
I encourage Joe Klein [March 5] to talk to some Republican voters outside the Beltway. John McCain was always more popular among the news media and moderate Democrats than among Republican voters, especially Republican primary voters. His name recognition is high, but his acceptability is low. McCain didn’t lose his edge. He never had one.
Dave Robertson, louisville, COLORADO, U.S.

Europe Tightens Its Belt
Your story [Feb. 26] noted that statistician Enrico Giovannini is upset that people question official European inflation statistics; he claims that people have some “terrible problems of perception.” Is it possible he has lost touch with reality? He is welcome to stay in my house for a month and do some accounting. Products such as cars, refrigerators and new television sets are out of our reach — we are only hoping that our old ones will last 10 more years. We go to a restaurant once in three months, and this year we have decided to do without a summer holiday in nearby Corsica. We just can’t afford it anymore. And compared with one-income families, we are quite well off. Is it so difficult to understand that the tremendous price increase of everyday items along with a yearlong stagnation in payrolls leads to empty wallets?
Bettina Klein, PISA, ITALY

Lieberman’s G.O.P. Tryst
Senator Joe Lieberman lost the democratic primary because his constituents know that he is a lightweight shifting his allegiance as the wind blows, trying to play both sides of every issue [March 5]. He is the poster child for term limits in our Congress. He is still there because he is working the system for his own good, rather than for the benefit of the American people. How do we get rid of him?
Boyce Abbott, CHICAGO

Nexus of Terrorism and Drugs
The Noorzai case [Feb. 19] is a perfect example of this Administration’s botched war on terrorism and the Drug Enforcement Administration’s handling of the incredibly stupid war on drugs. Haji Bashar Noorzai could have been a real asset in rooting out the Taliban. Intelligence on the ground is a most valuable resource. Has Noorzai’s arrest really made a difference in heroin production? U.S. taxpayers will now have to spend millions to prosecute and detain him. The U.S. could wipe out the drug trade tomorrow by legalization and taxation, which would take away the enormous profits earned in illicit trade and reduce theft by addicts who steal to support their habit. The huge sums saved on incarceration and policing could be spent on health care and education.
William A. Ring, SAN DIEGO