Letters

Death Stalks a Continent

"Your compassionate story on the AIDS crisis in Africa first moved me to shame; then it moved me to act." CAMBRIA LOVELADY Memphis, Tenn.

At the end of World War II, the U.S. demonstrated benevolence and wisdom by spending billions of dollars to help rebuild Germany, much of the rest of war-torn Europe and Japan. Today it is unconscionable that the world's wealthiest and most powerful nation has failed to respond to the AIDS crisis with all the economic and technological assets it can muster [SPECIAL REPORT, Feb. 12]. For the world's only superpower to do anything less in the face of this horrific epidemic's escalating death toll would be regarded by all as a crime of negligence. RICHARD T. NOTKIN Helena, Mont.

James Nachtwey's photographs of AIDS patients represent more than just a thousand words each. They sometimes have the power to tell the whole story. THEO KINGMA Hollywood

The cycle of disease and poverty in sub-Saharan Africa will never be broken unless the women there can claim autonomy over their own bodies. Their subservience and absolute powerlessness, as is true in many places in the world, only serve to condemn more adults and children to suffering and death. I'm extremely angry that the world decries the symptoms but is not solving the underlying problems. These African women experience human rights violations every day of their lives. LYNN HIGHLAND Morrison, Colo.

It is unfortunate that while we are able to send in troops to enforce peace in warring nations, and we can provide relief for victims of nature's disasters, we are failing in the fight against the deadly disease of AIDS as it takes its toll all over the world, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. The saying "It takes a village to raise a child" also applies in this case; it takes the global village to combat the devastating and destructive strength of the AIDS virus. As long as developed countries don't take measures to help the underdeveloped nations of the Third World, no one is truly safe. JOHN SEGUN ODEYEMI Suffern, N.Y.

If President Bush wants to demonstrate his high moral character, he will not stand idly by while the spread of AIDS continues unabated. What should he do? Whatever it takes. KERRY LANGAN Oberlin, Ohio

Africa is being threatened by its own culture of male pride, intimidation, sexual entitlement, carelessness and gender- neutral cruelty. Don't blame the West for the epidemic of AIDS. This particular crime against humanity is being perpetrated by a culture in which the criminal is also the victim. Prevention should be the key strategy, but until the African culture opens its eyes to its part in this tragedy, it will be a losing battle. PATTI LAMB Richmond, Texas

You have opened formerly cold and callous eyes to the desperate need to help our sisters and brothers in Africa. DAN KOWBELL Toronto

Nothing will improve in Africa without a drastic change of attitude. Take Malawi, where the government, which had denied the existence of the disease in the country, has launched an AIDS-awareness campaign. This type of action must eventually take place everywhere in Africa. The West can make it happen faster by declaring that the leaders of the sub-Saharan African countries are guilty of genocide of their own people, and by imposing sanctions right away. CHEM COHEN Vancouver, B.C.

The West achieved the dismantling of Africa's most powerful government--the apartheid regime in South Africa--by threatening to call in its loans. The West must exercise that option again and apply pressure, especially against governments that turn a blind eye to traditional cultural practices that abuse women. The West must help those who suffer. LLEWELLYN VAN WYK Cape Town

Nothing affected me more than seeing the pictures of the innocent faces in this poignant and compelling article. How tragic that such a disease as AIDS has touched the fragile children in Africa. Thank you for embracing the crisis; there will be no more excuses about not acting to save whatever future lies ahead for Africa's children. RON DOTZ Toronto

The AIDS epidemic in Africa is nothing less than an act of genocide. The fact that international political and corporate entities have thus far done so little to help only shows how cruel the market economy can be. JAMES KERR Montreal

THE AIDS CRISIS TUGGED AT YOUR HEARTSTRINGS, BUT NOT EVERYONE WHO READ OUR STORY AGREED ON WHAT SHOULD BE DONE ABOUT IT. "Why should the U.S. fund Africa's denial when the answer to stopping this disease rests in the Africans' own hands?" an Arizona reader asked. "Is there a kit for castration? I'd gladly take out a loan to finance one," fumed one of our readers in Illinois, who was outraged by a comment from a Botswana truck driver who said he used prostitutes because "I'm human. I'm a man. I have to have sex." Following up on this red flag of sexual irresponsibility, a California reader concluded, "Look at the pictures, read the words, and then try to convince yourself that promiscuity is no big deal."

Hounds Outfoxed

Andrew Sullivan is right that England's heritage is being chipped away [VIEWPOINT, Jan. 29], but the attack on fox hunting has little to do with it. Far greater factors are at work. There are so-called liberal intellectuals who consider every facet of English identity, culture and heritage as something to be despised and attacked. And there are right-wingers who envision a shopping mall in every town. To these people, heritage and culture are something to be packaged and marketed. The English have the unfortunate knack of preserving those aspects of their heritage that should be consigned to history while discarding what should be preserved. A ban on fox hunting may reverse that trend. JON FYNE Shizuoka, Japan

Perils of Obesity

Your report on trying to get in good physical condition [HEALTH, Feb. 5] noted that according to a 1999 study, men who were obese and physically fit had about the same risk for all causes of death, over a 10-year period, as those who were of normal weight and physically fit. The study also reported, however, that men who were obese and physically fit had a 60% increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease, while those who were merely overweight and not fit had a 50% increased risk. Since about 60% of U.S. men are overweight or obese, the potential public-health impact of not maintaining normal weight could be enormous. In addition, men who were both obese and unfit were five times (rather than three times, as stated in your story) as likely to die of cardiovascular disease as physically fit men of normal weight. MING WEI, M.D., M.P.H. Plano, Texas

Not Just Grammar Police

You noted the work of Mel and Norma Gabler, self-anointed textbook watchdogs who compile lists of errors [EDUCATION, Feb. 12]. It would be nice if the Gablers kept their amending of school texts to grammatical mistakes. They are well known, however, for being extreme right-wing Christians who censor books freely if they stray from the Gablers' ultra-right-wing Christian agenda. These people are no better than German censors who burned books that departed from their ideology. MONTINO BOURBON DEL MONTE Santa Barbara, Calif.

The Yolk's On Us

The article "How Do You Junk Your Computer?" about ways to recycle computer parts [TECHNOLOGY, Feb. 12], included a diagram of a PC with a part identified as a "monitor yolk." I may not be a computer expert, but I do know the difference between the yoke on a cathode-ray tube and that of an egg, which is what's on your faces. HANNAH TANENBAUM Manlius, N.Y.

Oops! Our faces are red, not yellow.

Western Power Struggle

The story about the California electricity crisis was very informative [BUSINESS, Jan. 29]. I would, however, like to correct one statement. California's investor-owned utilities did not go along willingly with limitations on their ability to procure power through long-term contracts outside the spot market. The state's utilities requested the authority to pursue long-term contracts but were rebuffed by the California Public Utilities Commission in March 1999. After finally granting limited permission later, the CPUC denied repeated petitions for expanded authority. Long-term contracting is how electricity markets operate everywhere else in the world. THOMAS J. HIGGINS Senior Vice President Edison International Rosemead, Calif.

Gee, It Was Nominated Anyway

Your item "How Much For That Oscar?" [NOTEBOOK, Feb. 12] said DreamWorks sent out "extravagant...coffee table books" about its film Gladiator. The company may have given those books to somebody, but since it didn't send them to Academy members (which could have disqualified the picture in question), the gesture doesn't seem relevant to an article on Oscar lobbying. BRUCE DAVIS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Beverly Hills, Calif.

We're sorry the reference to DreamWorks wasn't apt; we're also sad that we missed out on a book filled with photos of hunky Russell Crowe.

The Dope on Antidepressants

Your article "Proving The Chemistry Of The Brain" [THE FUTURE OF DRUGS, Jan. 15], on the latest medical developments for many serious diseases, contained inaccurate information about duloxetine, a compound being developed by Eli Lilly & Co. for the treatment of depression. Duloxetine is not among the class of antidepressants called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. In fact, duloxetine is a powerful and balanced reuptake inhibitor of both serotonin and norepinephrine, one of the other main neurotransmitters involved in depression. This is a much different approach offering a potentially more effective and better-tolerated treatment. JOHN HAYES, M.D. Executive Director and Leader Duloxetine Antidepressant Team Eli Lilly & Co. Indianapolis, Ind.

Putting More X in the XFL

The type of extreme football played by the XFL will add a refreshing new side to professional sports [SHOW BUSINESS, Feb. 12]. The XFL players are in it for the love of the game. Along with the increased level of violence, another thing will make the games more interesting: if the players don't win, they don't get paid any more than $50,000 a year. That means they ought to be truly committed to winning. JAMES HEATH Columbia, Ill.

Or committed to an asylum.

Killer Dogs

RE your article on the dogs that killed a San Francisco woman [NATION, Feb. 12]: unfortunately, as in most cases of dog attacks, the last thing anyone worries about is the animal. Training a dog to be aggressive or to be an attack dog is a form of abuse. The dogs involved in the fatal mauling, Bane and Hera, learned that they would be rewarded if they were aggressive. People don't realize that how you raise a dog is just as important as how you rear a child. If you abuse an animal or teach it to be aggressive, you should expect to have an animal that will attack, and you will have to face the consequences. LISA BATES Tamarac, Fla.

It's time to legally recognize the potential threat that certain breeds of dogs pose to public safety. As the owner of four dogs, two retrievers, one small poodle mix and a German shepherd, I can say without a doubt that my German shepherd is far more than a wet-nosed pet; his reaction to a perceived threat against me or my child could be a fatal one.

Owning a dog with a high degree of protection instinct is exactly the same as having a loaded firearm in my home. I should be held responsible for any damages to innocent life that my canine weapon inflicts. DARLENE GARFIELD Columbia, Mo.

Cut Jesse Some Slack

Though it's hard to explain away the Rev. Jesse Jackson's moral shortcomings [DIVIDING LINE, Jan. 29], for the simple reason that he is supposed to be aboveboard even when the lights go out, nonetheless, he should not be ostracized. We must remember that even the Pope is just another mortal being. And like others, when he says his prayers, he asks forgiveness for his shortcomings. AFOLABI KUTI Lagos, Nigeria

Corrections

Our review of John Searles' novel Boy Still Missing [BOOKS, Feb. 12] incorrectly said the movie rights to the book have already been sold. Although there has been significant interest and prospects look good, the film rights for the novel have not yet been purchased. Interested parties can contact Searles' agent at (212) 218-3350.

In the story about Michigan Judge Susan Chrzanowski and her relationship with attorney Michael Fletcher [NATION, Feb. 12], we said Fletcher worked as a law clerk for Chrzanowski. Although he was a student law clerk for the city of Warren, Mich., when Chrzanowski was elected judge, he did not work directly for her.