Cain Did It

Sir / After reading your Essay "Psychology of Murder" [April 24], I am forced to say that phrases like "Violence is as American as cherry pie" and "sick society"--mouthed and re-mouthed incessantly for shock effect--offend my passion for scientific accuracy.

To impute collective responsibility when only one or a few individuals are involved is not only inaccurate but quite unfair, and it serves only to encourage crime. Crime is committed by those who do it or have it done, and not by the body of society, which is on the whole law-abiding.

If we are to halt crime, we have to stop blurring the distinction between Cain and Abel. It was Cain who killed his brother.

NANCY CATHERINE MOORE

Santa Monica, Calif.

Sir / You seem to think that all you have to do is disarm the citizen and your problems are ended. It sounds so simple and easy. But just try it. Most of the firearms in the U.S. today are owned by hard-working average American people who enjoy hunting and target sport-shooting. I myself have three rifles, one shotgun and two automatic pistols. The availability of these firearms to me is not a stimulus to murder as you suggest.

DON NOURY

Southington, Conn.

Sir / Since man cannot create life at will or spontaneously, he is in awe of his power to destroy it. This may be the reason for his fascination with murder. But I doubt that just acknowledging an unhealthy fascination with murder will change man's impulses to destroy life.

JUDY ODDENINO

Falls Church, Va.

Sir / An action becomes violent when selfish concern for a particular goal overrides consideration for others.

Our cultural emphasis on self-reliant individualism has augmented our instinctive self-concern, and our cultural emphasis on winning and competing has helped produce a society unresponsive to the needs of others, which in turn makes it more necessary to be self-concerned to survive.

MARILYN KRAMER

Wausau, Wis.

Sir / Virginia Adams failed to analyze the most bloody and murderous of all: the females who kill their young by abortion.

The reasoning for murder is simple. In the dim but not so distant past, it was thought that a human being had the right to be loved because he existed. More recently he is granted the right to exist only if he is loved beforehand.

Why do we complain of an impersonal Military-Industrial-Complex-for-Murder when we demand government-paid abortion on request?

HENRY V. SATTLER, PH.D.

Scranton, Pa.

Outrage over Taxes

Sir / As one of the Middle American taxpayers near revolt [April 24], I can assure you that my primary concern is not the loopholes in the income tax law. My outrage is over the fantastic and ever-increasing demands of the Federal Government for more and more tax dollars. The Congress continues to spend as though there were no bottom to the taxpayer's pocket.

My view as a Middle American taxpayer is that I would prefer to see the Federal Government spend less, a lot less, rather than worry about the loopholes.

PAUL R. GRAVES

South Burlington, Vt.

Sir / So John Connally was outraged over the way taxpayers were cheating the Government. Bully for him! I am outraged too! I suggest that all persons who are called in for auditing take their cases to the tax courts. If a couple of million cases bog down in the courts, they will never be straightened out.

RAY LUKACS

Cleveland

Sir / I am puzzled by the gross inconsistency of Senators running about the country and baying about tax reform.

Why don't they stay in Congress where they belong and do something about it?

R.D. MAHAFFEY

Missoula, Mont.

A Worried Look

Sir / The cover photo by David Burnett [April 17] of the ARVN soldier peering worriedly from under his camouflaged helmet epitomizes so much of the mess that is Viet Nam today. Protected for the moment by a U.S. steel helmet and a U.S. flak jacket, he is still apprehensive about the future. We've put food in his mouth, clothes on his back, weapons in his hands, but we have not put fire in his belly. He has to do that for himself.

Until the people of South Viet Nam find some national pride, we are only messing about on the pretext of doing good.

ROBERT MARKER

Northbrook, Ill.

Sir / Having spent Tet '68 in beautiful downtown Danang, dodging rockets and participating in a limited, unpopular war full of restrictions and contradictions, I, too, returned home disillusioned. But, like many G.I.s, I felt the North's aggression, overt or covert, was as important to stop as the aggression we faced from North Korea, Japan and Germany.

Now another North Vietnamese offensive is on. This time, however, Nixon has called the enemy's bluff by supporting the ARVN with airpower and finally carrying the war back to the targets that count in the North.

K.N. BROWN JR.

Belleville, Ill.

Sir / Now for the first time I am hoping for a North Vietnamese victory. Something must be done to end the war, and the long sought answer may have arrived. Who knows? We might even lose Richard Nixon in the deal.

WALTER SGALITZER

Bellingham, Wash.

Responsible Remark

Sir / A remark that disparages the Italian people is attributed to an unidentified "senior Rand Corporation analyst [April 17]." Let me assure you that if such a statement was indeed made by a member of the Rand staff, he was not reflecting a corporate viewpoint.

We at Rand deplore such an irresponsible, reprehensible remark.

DONALD B. RICE

President

The Rand Corporation

Santa Monica, Calif.

The Cost of Toast

Sir / After reading your article "The Sprouting Farm Issue" [April 24], I am amazed. If it took eleven hours of farm labor to produce a bushel of wheat, your morning toast would be at a price that would make you appreciate it.

JERRY J. CLARK

Mayville, Wis.

qedTIME should have said that eleven hours of work can produce 100 bushels of wheat.

Sir / Your article lamenting "giantism" on the farm is a non sequitur. I am waiting for you to advocate the efficient manufacture of quality automobiles in small corner garages.

W.C. FOXLEY

Omaha

Ridiculous Implication

Sir / Your piece entitled "Dirty Harry" [May 1] was misleading and unfair. Perhaps this was because TIME magazine was not present, and because it therefore missed the flavor and intent of the verbal exchange between reporters and me, my words were taken out of context. Those reporters present did not use the exchange because they understood that I was trying to underscore the ridiculous implication of a question and comment from two reporters by responding with an equally ridiculous and facetious comment. Every reporter I have talked with since your publication of the story was likewise surprised that TIME would print such a distorted picture, which, rather than being "colorful," only serves to intensify racial polarization.

HARRY S. DENT

Special Counsel to the President

The White House

Washington, D.C.

Awards and Guesses

Sir / In response to your story on the National Book Awards [April 24], I want to point out that, as spokesman for the three judges of children's books, I stated at the press conference that we had not been able to reach a unanimous decision, that the award was going to Donald Barthelme's The Slightly Irregular Fire Engine, and that we were not going to make our discussion public.

From this you deduce that "Lore Segal . . . filed a solid minority objection." Wrong guess, and two to go.

LORE SEGAL

New York City

Arctic Concerts

Sir / We all appreciated hearing the Seattle Symphony [April 24], even if its public utterances were condescending: "Alaskans are the most unsophisticated audiences in the world." I would like to point out that the Arctic Chamber Orchestra was in most of those places in the past two years, playing Bach and Mozart. We have given orchestral concerts in 17 different towns and villages, traveling over 7,000 miles in a DC-3. Other ensembles from the University of Alaska have played in villages the Seattle people never heard of. The Seattle Symphony is welcome back any time, but don't patronize the bush residents.

GORDON B. WRIGHT

Conductor

Arctic Chamber Orchestra

Fairbanks, Alaska

No Memos

Sir / With regard to your article "Questioning the Power of the Networks" [April 24], about their right to broadcast their own materials, especially the news, public affairs and documentary programming, I suggest that the three networks get together and offer three times $400,000 to the Republican National Committee for their upcoming convention, together with an apology for having stepped on their toes.

It is also suggested that this be done through proper White House channels and that no memos be written!

VIRGINIA A. BOYE

Wausau, Wis.

A Long Season

Sir / Even many of us who are baseball "nuts" will admit that the season is too long, but your story [April 24] is really extending it by saying that 3,802 games remain even after 86 were canceled.

Unfortunately for many teams, it takes two teams to play one game. You'll find that the 1972 season will have 1,858 games. And that's still quite a few.

BERT L. "BUD" CHAMBERS JR.

Bartlesville, Okla.

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