O.J. SIMPSON AND THE ISSUE OF RACE

"We'll remember it as the trial of the century, but not as one that split America. If America is divided, O.J. is not to blame. We are." MARTINE E. DUNPHY New York City HOW BLIND AMERICA HAS BECOME. THE O.J. Simpson trial was not about race and racial division in the U.S. [COVER STORIES, Oct. 9]. It was deeper than that: it was about poverty vs. wealth. The struggle of classes is the foundation of all religious, economic and political systems, and the Simpson trial only reflects the superficiality of the times. It's the same old struggle: the rich and powerful manipulate us and blind the common citizen. It's the same old story: the poor and innocent get poorer. The rich--white or black--get richer. LOUIS ALEXANDER JIMANEZ Santa Monica, California

THE DOUBLE STANDARD OF JUSTICE THAT many blacks complain about will continue until lawyers stop exploiting their clients' color and until every criminal trial has the same financial backing on both sides--defense and prosecution--as did O.J. Simpson's. This trial has proved only that money can buy reasonable doubt. VICTOR M. SANCHEZ JR. El Paso, Texas aol: Ebola Zaer

YOU QUOTE LARRY MILLER, A WHITE MAN who owns a Chicago hot-dog stand, as saying, "I've never known racism to be an excuse for murder.'' But for years during and after slavery, African Americans were killed because of the color of their skin. They were lynched, raped and torn from their families, and the excuse was racism. When are white Americans going to look beyond race and appreciate African Americans for who they are instead of judging them by appearances? America was built on the backs of African Americans. I hope that very soon white America will acknowledge that fact. NAME WITHHELD ON REQUEST New York City

I HAD NEVER HEARD OF SIMPSON BEFORE the murders. During the trial, the evidence made things look bleak for him, but now I have to wonder, Does money make all the difference? AMPARO GRANADA Barcelona

I WAS VERY DISAPPOINTED BY THE REmarks of Los Angeles writer and social commentator Karen Grigsby Bates in the TIME forum of opinions on the "trial of the century." She said Fred Goldman, the father of murder victim Ron Goldman, "brought the Holocaust" into the trial. Goldman was reacting with justifiable outrage to Johnnie Cochran's likening Mark Fuhrman to Hitler. Even though Bates said Goldman has the right to be hurt by the loss of his son, she then characterized Goldman as manipulative when he "played the Holocaust card," as if this were all a game with no real issues and no real consequences. Bates revealed an astonishing lack of sensitivity. This was a callous dismissal of the malignant and ever present force that the Holocaust holds for Jews. GLORIA W. GOVERMAN Stormville, New York

PERHAPS 50 YEARS FROM NOW, HISTORians will see the O.J. Simpson trial as a significant turning point, marking a shift from white Anglo-Saxon Protestant dominance to true multicultural pluralism in American society. JAMES R. FISHER JR. Tampa, Florida

THE SHEPHERD AND HIS FLOCK

I READ WITH GREAT INTEREST YOUR REport on Catholicism in America [RELIGION, Oct. 9]. It's good to know there are other American Catholics who believe the things I do: that the Roman Catholic Church is to serve as a spiritual guide, but that my conscience is developed enough to allow me to make decisions on complex moral and political issues myself. The church should stick to being a spiritual guide and stay out of politics. JEFF DAVIS Topeka, Kansas Via E-mail

POPE JOHN PAUL II IS WELL ADVISED TO be disturbed by the state of the Roman Catholic Church in America. "Fewer and fewer'' men may be celebrating Masses, thus driving the trend toward a smaller and smaller Mass. The craze for entertainment has insinuated itself into the church. There must be theater, spectacle, or people will be bored and maybe stay home. Perhaps the Mass might be eliminated, and Catholics could simply emulate their Protestant brethren with scriptural reading and hymn singing. Change for the sake of change has proved detrimental. I find myself driven from church to church, seeking a Mass that is still a Mass and not just a liturgy sandwiched between hymns. MAUREEN MCNALLY GALLARDO Hamilton, Ohio

THERE SEEMS TO BE A GLITCH IN TIME'S writing style. Whenever my name is used, the words "steamy novels" are added, as in the story about the Pope's visit. I hope you can correct the glitch, because it is false. My novels are "steamy" only to those who have not read them. Those who have know that they are novels about God's love. ANDREW M. GREELEY Professor of Social Science University of Chicago Chicago

ABSTAINING FROM SEX

LANCE MORROW PRESENTS ABSTINENCE as virtually the only option for teenagers [ESSAY, Oct. 2], but teenage sex has been going on since the beginning of humankind. Society has made a great mistake by stigmatizing it. Nature sends us hormones for a reason. Youthful sex is a perfectly natural thing and something that will never go away. Teenagers are not wild-eyed maniacs, but it's obvious to me as a teenager that to "just say no" to sex is not a viable option. Whether or not abstinence is the "right thing," it's not realistic. By their senior year in high school, nearly 70% of teenagers are having sex, so it's better to shove condoms at them than to reprimand them for being impure. LETA BOYLAN Brooklyn, Michigan

I TEACH HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS AND see the price they pay for self-indulgent behavior. It is undeniably obvious to me on Monday mornings when I see their tired faces and their jaded eyes. They have no sense of the value of discipline or self-denial in any aspect of their life, least of all in their sexuality. It is difficult to see what they have gained living in this ethos of irresponsibility, and painfully clear what they have lost. AMY WELBORN Lakeland, Florida aol: Avw35

BRAVO FOR LANCE MORROW. HIS ESSAY was so logical and crystal clear that I am absolutely sure no Washington bureaucrat or media leader will ever be able to understand it. We are human beings, not animals. We do have free will. Self-control builds character. PAT O'CONNELL Paoli, Pennsylvania

CLICK, CLICK. SOMEONE TUNE IN MORrow to a station, any station! Does he watch rock videos or listen to the radio? Was he ever a teen, or was he just born old? Today's teenagers are no different from any other generation's! Morrow should focus on the recommendation made in his last sentence: "Change the myth, and the values follow.'' MARTI WEST San Diego, California

SNAGS IN GENETIC TREATMENT

SCIENTISTS MAY BE ACCUSED OF "PUSHing too far too fast'' for breakthroughs in gene therapy [MEDICINE, Oct. 9], but this only reflects current market trends and social pressures. The U.S. government is pushing ever harder for immediate returns on research money, at the expense of basic science. Scientists are actively encouraged by their departments, host institutions and government policy to try to market discoveries. This situation, coupled with declining funding, puts scientists in a position of having to "market to survive.'' The fact that so much money has gone into gene therapy indicates that scientists have adapted and have been successful at marketing their work. But the market is not a good driving force for science. JEFFREY F. DUNN Hanover, New Hampshire Via E-mail

CORRECTION

A SECTION OF LETTERS DEALING WITH the French nuclear tests included one that was mistakenly attributed to Nicolas Nolf of Grenoble, France [LETTERS, Oct. 9]. It was written by Sylvie Moscatelli of Vaux sur Mer, France.