Letters

THE BELOVED OPRAH

"I applaud you for gracing your cover with a woman who is one of the strongest and most courageous spiritual leaders of our time." BARBARA VAN GORDER Washington

Oprah is a treasure, and I am just one of millions who feel so very grateful for the inspiration she willingly gives [CINEMA, Oct. 5]. She continues to seek ways to pull us toward honesty, truth, goodness and reality. I always feel touched by this woman. She has wings. PATRICE NELSON Chester, Conn.

How beautiful to see Oprah on the cover of TIME and know a worthy story awaited me within its pages. I can't tell you how happy I was not to see another cover on Washington's obsession. TERRI ZAJAC Elyria, Ohio

President Clinton could take cues from Oprah. She admits experimenting with drugs, suffering childhood indignities, learning from bad relationships. Unlike so many who continue to make unhealthy choices, feeling sorry for themselves or blaming others, Oprah evolves. She doesn't spin around the same lame stuff. Think of what she's accomplished in one lifetime. Think of how everyone loves her. In a cynical, road-rage, self-absorbed America, Oprah is a hero we can all identify with and aspire to emulate. CHERYL O'DONOVAN URBANIK Schaumburg, Ill.

Oprah's Beloved appears to be one more in the current series of racial hate-mongering films. Doesn't anyone remember how Uncle Tom's Cabin, by vilifying the antebellum slave owners, helped bring on a war that cost half a million lives? JERRY PATTERSON Van Nuys, Calif.

Your cover story on Oprah was superb! She--along with Colin Powell, Clarence Thomas and Michael Jordan--has done much to foster positive relations between black and white Americans. Oprah has demonstrated that we can and do judge people by the content of their character and not by the color of their skin. RICHARD F. MANNING Naples, Fla.

Picture this. Waiting for my TIME, I eagerly open my mailbox. I run into the house flipping pages as I go. Then the picture of Oprah, scarred from lashings, slaps me upside the head in "Oprah's Summer Dream." I throw it to the floor. I cannot go there. Not with this woman--not my beloved Oprah. I must. I force myself to look at Oprah's scars. I thought I understood. In Roots, I cried with Kizzy and adored Chicken George. But this is different. This is someone I really know. My soul knows her well. I run my hand across her back. Although the page is smooth, my fingertips tell a different story. A story I cannot bear. I touch her hair. I want her to turn around so that I can hold her. I weep. Thank you, TIME. MILISSA GLASS Lebanon, Ohio

Thanks, Oprah, for being you and for inspiring women all over the world. Lead on, ringmaster! NECIL B. OLIVER Powhatan, Va.

TRIPP THE TRIPPER

In your article "There's Something about Linda" [NATION, Oct. 5], Linda Tripp turns out to be exactly what we have come to expect: devious, manipulative and certainly not someone who can be called a friend. The Judiciary Committee agreed to censor the numerous racial and ethnic jokes that Tripp and Monica Lewinsky made. Regardless of their relevance, if Clinton had made one of these jokes, it would have been front-page headlines. Why are Lewinsky and Tripp sheltered from public disclosure of their tasteless and biased remarks? ABE LIU Del Mar, Calif.

Does anyone really think that Tripp did all this by herself? She made dozens of secret recordings, some of which may have been expertly edited and copied. She carefully worked Lewinsky to ensure a trail of evidence, including a semen-stained dress, e-mail, letters, gifts, logs and more. Linda Tripp, you are definitely not like me. You are a dangerous, right-wing radical. LOIS KALMICK Encino, Calif.

How is it possible for Tripp to have set up the two smartest men in the world? Is Billy so stupid that he would risk his presidency for his assignations with Monica? Yes! Is the smartest lawyer in the world so stupid as not to realize that his friend Billy is having an affair with Monica? Oh, yes! My question is, How stupid do you think the American people are? Very! LUCILE THOMPSON Seeley Lake, Mont.

WHY BLACKS SUPPORT CLINTON

One reason African Americans support President Clinton is that we see historical hypocrisy in American morals [DIVIDING LINE, Oct. 5]. For inappropriate consensual sexual behavior, America demanded of President Clinton contriteness and apologies, while during 350 years of American enslavement and apartheid, black women were sexually brutalized by white men without recourse to justice. African Americans have never received apologies or other expressions of remorse. Americans see in the faces of black people the reflections of the past sins of their nation's approved immoral behavior. Anti-Clinton politicians and public notables are touting morals that never existed in our nation's history.

America was built by the lash and by liberty; both the immoral and the moral contributed to its greatness. African Americans have been able to deal with this anomaly. It is time for other Americans to become aware that it was such contradictions that wove this nation into what it is today. HELEN GENTRY Detroit

KEYHOLE POLITICS

Richard Lacayo gives voice to the gnawing uneasiness many Americans feel about Kenneth Starr's investigation-- that while the President's conduct was clearly wrong, Starr's investigation was somehow not right [VIEWPOINT, Oct. 5]. As Lacayo correctly points out, much more than Clinton's presidency is at stake here. Congress must act with discretion and care. MICHAEL J. MULLET Rockford, Mich.

I was shocked at the immature reasoning in Lacayo's piece. He suggests that we rethink society's position on adultery, which was "taboo just a few months ago." It is still taboo; it is still wrong. I don't care how many Presidents or Congressmen commit adultery. I can't stand this raising of "nonpartisanship" as if it were some kind of lofty goal more important than truth. Even if some of us fail at times, the goal still matters. ROBERT MCCORMICK Concord, Calif.

As a child, I was taught not to peek into other people's windows or read other people's letters. I feel embarrassed and disturbed that I was forcefully exposed to someone's private matters. ZOYA KINSTLER Tampa, Fla.

IS THE COUNTRY AT RISK?

Although legal precedent says personal conduct is not grounds for impeachment, our Commander in Chief put our country at risk [NATION, Oct. 5]. He was AWOL, both physically and mentally, on the public's time. He violated his allegiance to the country. I find it offensive that our President had to poll-search instead of soul-search before he would grudgingly and belatedly apologize to the voting public. He keeps repeating that he wants to do the job the people elected him to do. After years of part-time duty, he is aware, at least when it's convenient, that he has leadership responsibilities. JEANNE AUBINEAU REDLICK Scottsdale, Ariz.

By sparing the nation months of divisive impeachment hearings, Richard Nixon put the good of America before his personal interests. Bill Clinton's refusal to take the honorable course and resign is proof that Clinton loves Clinton more than Clinton loves America. SHALOM DINERSTEIN New York City

If nothing interferes with the probable course of events, the President may well go on exploiting the power of his position until he engineers his own downfall. It is characteristic of his psychological state that Clinton has shifted a large part of the blame to the special prosecutor instead of squarely shouldering responsibility for his actions. Someone with Starr's tenacity was needed to bring the truth to light. Whether or not we like Starr personally is beside the point. He is only the messenger, bearing news that none of us wants to hear. JANET O. DALLETT Port Townsend, Wash.

Starr turned over rock after slimy rock. No roaches like the ones we met in Watergate or Irangate scurried out. But he did find a weevil of a sexual indiscretion. With the impatience of a Kurosawa, he shouted to his minions to roll the camera. He zoomed in on the weevil; it turned into a Godzilla; and he unveiled it to the public. The production cost was dizzying millions if you account for the man-hours lost in looking at the weevil morphed into a monster. NARAYAN RAMACHNADER Chennai, India

After the November elections, the Republicans will probably be strong in a weak and somewhat ridiculous country. FRED W. STEUTEL Eindhoven, the Netherlands

The Congress of the U.S. will never impeach President Clinton for the simple reason that he and his wife faithfully represent the ethical, moral and social values of mainstream America. TECWYN ROBERTS Port Coquitlam, B.C.

By refusing to resign, Clinton is saying he wants to go down fighting. The problem is that since he is President of the most powerful nation on earth, the victims of his anarchy will be global. Clinton's hardheadedness will soon start claiming victims, and they will be far-flung. No continent will be immune. Americans will be abdicating their responsibility for global leadership if they continue to pretend this issue is exclusively an American problem. PETER EGBE-ULU Lagos, Nigeria

THE WORLD LOOKS ON

Why does the press keep calling Kenneth W. Starr the independent counsel [SPECIAL REPORT, Sept. 28]? He may be restless, boundless and vindictive, but he is definitely not independent. Starr's efforts should not be rewarded by Clinton's resignation or impeachment. ALEXANDRE A. ROCHA Brasilia

To let Clinton's crime go unpunished would send to people everywhere a dangerous message: perjury is not serious, and you won't be punished for it. PAUL LUEDTKE Nyon, Switzerland

After the Starr Report's appearance on the Internet and the release of Clinton's grand jury testimony, what's next? A live TV broadcast from the Clintons' White House bedroom? BIRGIT KARPF Herrenberg, Germany

It is extraordinary that Americans can even contemplate allowing Clinton to remain in office. The evidence I have seen shows that he is a devious, immoral liar and has brought his country and its presidency into disrepute. Will it ever again be possible to take the U.S. President seriously if Clinton is not removed or persuaded to resign? ROBIN H. CROSS Grahamstown, South Africa

The real danger lies not in the President's sexual behavior and lying but in the fact that too much power is given to an independent investigator and a grand jury to dig into the private affairs of an American citizen. It is undemocratic and a travesty of justice to force a person to divulge his or her most private secrets, and it is sheer depravity to have all those sordid details made public. The grand jury is an anomaly and an anachronism; it should be abolished. CORNELIS VROLIJK The Hague

Hah-hah, hah-hah, heh-heh, he-he, he-he, ho-ho, ho-ho. That's the sound of Europeans laughing at Americans as they humiliate their own President. HELINA YLISIRNIO Helsinki

If the videotaped material of the President's grand jury testimony was meant for the entire world to see, why wasn't it broadcast live in the first place? KENT LYON Munich

By cheating and lying time and again throughout his career, Clinton has stupefied the moral sensitivity of the American people. This is by far the worst damage he has done to the U.S. Americans may have enjoyed an economic upturn under Clinton, but they have lost part of their soul. YEUNG YAM Hong Kong

Starr has provided pornography for millions of Americans (including youngsters) and others around the world who would not have sought out such material. Let us hope he next focuses on members of Congress. Oh, what a titillating time will be had by all! By the way, what happened to the charges about Whitewater? DONALD WILLIAM PAMENTER Hamilton, Ont.

CASINOS FOR THE RICH

In your story "The Brightest and The Brokest" about the "rescue" of Long Term Capital Management, a hedge fund that deals in high-risk global investments [BUSINESS, Oct. 5], I was struck by the hypocrisy of the U.S. Federal Reserve. First it lectured East Asian countries like Japan and Korea not to bail out their banks and corporations that are failing because of bad loans. Then it bullied a consortium of American banks to bail out Long Term Capital because its failure could trigger a meltdown in the U.S. market. Make no mistake, the hedge funds in their current form are not long-term investments but gambling joints for the superrich and big banks. CHIN SAI-KONG Trondheim, Norway

ORGANS: MEETING THE NEED

As a kidney-transplant recipient, I am personally interested in the new allocation guidelines the Federal Government wants [MEDICINE, Oct. 5], especially the rule that "the most gravely ill should be first in line for scarce medical resources." There is no mention of expected survival rate. Putting the most gravely ill first in line would be a waste, not an equalizer. The sickest have often developed other serious systemic problems, and the survival rate would no doubt plummet. Precious and scarce organs would live for days and months instead of years and decades. That hardly seems smart or fair, practical or economical. The entire problem must be solved by having a vigorous, informed national donor-awareness program. There can be enough of the needed organs for everyone. If we simply work on the supply, the distribution will take care of itself. DONNA BRINKMAN Dayton, Ohio

The latest flap over organ allocation diverts attention from the underlying cause of all allocation problems: a shortage. The simple truth is that this shortage is the direct result of a failed public policy. Specifically, the National Organ Transplant Act of 1984 bars the buying or selling of human organs (even cadaver organs) for transplantation. The easiest solution is to allow a market in cadaver organs.

To form such a market would equilibrate supply and demand, eliminating the shortage. If the shortage were resolved, allocation issues would become moot, and thousands of lives could be saved each year. DAVID L. KASERMAN Torchmark Professor of Economics Auburn University Auburn, Ala.

MIRACLES AT SEA

Your piece on Sylvia Earle was inspiring and beautifully written [ENVIRONMENT, Oct. 5]. With a lyrical, poetic style, the author gave us a taste of the miracles taking place every day in the seas that surround us, never losing sight of the urgency to preserve our life-giving waters. The article was a welcome vacation from the usual fare of political scandal and botched foreign policy. DAVID J. KENT Santa Cruz, Calif.

FOR AND AGAINST PEANUT BANS

Applause for Christine Gorman! Though I've suffered for years from a multitude of allergies, I can't agree more that banning peanuts doesn't work and is counterproductive [PERSONAL TIME: HEALTH, Oct. 5].

Bans instill a false sense of security and don't allow children to practice defensive measures. Some parents of allergic children expect schools to provide a peanut-free setting when parents themselves still bring their children to potentially "dangerous" places. Or is it possible that they never take their children to the grocery store, the mall, the movies, the fair or out anyplace in public at all, where a perilous peanut may just be lurking. ROBERTA CARLTON HEFFERMAN Lexington, Mass.

My son has food allergies, and it's quite apparent when he has eaten something he is allergic to. His eyes swell. His face swells. Eventually, his cheeks turn as red as a boiled lobster. We give him an antihistamine as soon as it starts, but we always have epinephrine, a prescribed medication. Epinephrine stops the life-threatening swelling of the airways--if used in time. Banning peanuts is a safety issue, not a cultural one. I strongly suspect that even Dr. George Washington Carver would agree. AMY GAJDA Champaign, Ill.

Now I am going to have an even harder time convincing people that I am not exaggerating my allergies. You don't know how creepy it is knowing that anything you eat may cause your death. MARINA TEMPELSMAN, 10 New York City

OUT: A SECRET ABOUT CHILE

I read your article on Chilean wines with great sorrow [LIVING, Oct. 5]. These wonderful bargains had been one of the best-kept secrets for some time. Now that the world knows, you can be sure the prices will rise. RON ENGELHART Sierra Vista, Ariz.

INIMITABLE GERSHWIN LYRICS

Some may confuse many songs written in that Gershwin era as music by George, as Wilfrid Sheed observes in his piece "Setting the Standards" [MUSIC, Oct. 5], but no one could ever miss the unique alliterations of Ira Gershwin. Who else would ever come up with lines like "he made his home in dat fish's abdomen" and "maybe Tuesday will be my good news day."

Some music may actually sound as if George Gershwin wrote it, but Ira Gershwin's lyrics and style were not so readily mimicked. MITCHELL J. RYCUS Ann Arbor, Mich.