Letters

Leo Up Close

"Thanks to Joel Stein's smug report on DiCaprio, I have more compassion for celebrities and less for the paparazzi." DON AVIROM Peace River, Alta.

In his report on wunderkind actor (sort of) Leonardo DiCaprio [CINEMA, Feb. 21], Joel Stein managed in the nicest possible way not only to inform and entertain us but also to give the subject enough room to hang himself. DiCaprio is silly, shallow, ill informed about subjects he pontificates on, and very, very young--intellectually and emotionally. But these are not indictable offenses. DiCaprio has shown himself to be a fine young actor in some films. I won't see The Beach until it comes out on video, but I will continue to read Stein faithfully. CHRISTINE ROSANIA Chicago Heights, Ill.

Pretty-boy actor DiCaprio is a good-looking kid who can't act and makes forgettable films. He doesn't merit the coverage you gave him. Who cares about his grocery-store receipt? This is tabloid material. I expect better stories from TIME. Go back to the original premise you were founded on and cover the real news and events that shape our world. STEPHEN M. ROSENBERG Littleton, Colo.

After working as a hairdresser in films for more than 40 years, I know that actors give us their all. Why are they supposed to be magnificent in interviews, especially if the person posing the questions is not intelligent enough to ask ones that are meaningful? I love to watch Leonardo on the screen. He is frequently superb. How often would we bare our minds and hearts to a stranger? GINGER BLYMYER Eaton Center, N.H.

Thanks a million for the fresh and funny view of an overpublicized actor. ATIYA HASAN York, Pa.

Your coverage of DiCaprio is the sick epitome of what has become important in American culture--looks, wealth, looks, success, looks, undeserved celebrity and looks. I assure you little Leo is laughing all the way to the bank. LINDSEY CARNICK, AGE 18 Manitou Springs, Colo.

In his interview with Stein, DiCaprio accomplished exactly what he wanted. He remains a mystery. VIVIAN THOMPSON Indianapolis, Ind.

Forget Leo. I'm saving myself for Joel. His articles are the most entertaining I read all week. AMY GORE Atlanta

A Plea for Genuine Reform

Three cheers to Don Barlett, Jim Steele and TIME for so graphically illustrating the insidious influence and devastating effects of campaign contributions on politics [Big Money & Politics, Feb. 7]. It is shameful that lawmakers and Administration officials are so desperate for cash that they will work tirelessly to bail out a single wealthy donor at the expense of small-business owners. What we need is genuine campaign-finance reform, so that lawmakers can no longer be encouraged to give their votes to the highest bidders. We need to ban soft money, allow for public financing of elections and provide free TV time. Until we do, average Americans will inevitably lose, as you so eloquently demonstrated. JOAN CLAYBROOK, PRESIDENT Public Citizen Washington

Scrap, Not Waste

Your report on campaign contributions [BIG MONEY & POLITICS, Feb. 7] mentioned changes in the Superfund law that relieved scrap-material dealers of liability at toxic-waste sites. The intent of Congress in passing Superfund legislation was to clean up contaminated waste sites and to promote, not harm, the recycling industry. Scrap materials are not waste. They are recyclable. But for more than 10 years, it has been necessary for those in the recyclable-scrap business to fight to have them correctly labeled not as waste but as reusable materials. The law you referred to was supported by 69 Senate co-sponsors as well as the Administration and the environmental community. To suggest that the legislators who backed this law were motivated by campaign contributions is beyond insulting to the many members of Congress who listened carefully to our plight and worked with great diligence to solve a problem that needed correction. The result is that now the true polluters, not the scrap industry, will be left with the responsibility of paying for cleanups. JERRY SIMMS, DIRECTOR Environmental Affairs Atlas Metal & Iron Corp. Denver

The World of Cybercomics

So Stan Lee, famous for Spider-Man, has put comics on the Web in the form of "simple, online, animated shorts" [SHOW BUSINESS, Feb. 14]. So what? He's following a trend that has been around for a long time. The real cutting-edge thing in cybercomics has been amateur cartoonists, who've experienced success in the new medium for the past four years. The Web has brought independence and affordability to comic creators. It doesn't cost a fortune to set up a Web page and attract readers. It doesn't make a lot of money for you, but often you're in the comics biz 'cause you love it.

I know because I work on an online comic strip titled Dela the Hooda. We've been turned down by newspapers and mainstream comics, but at least here in cyberspace, we can find our readership. And now demand is bringing cybercomics to print. R. GREG OLDER Merrickville, Ont.

Cut the Umbilical Cord

After decades of conflict and the deaths of thousands of innocent people, the British government should wake up and realize that there is only one solution to the Northern Ireland problem [WORLD, Feb. 21]: Britain must cut the umbilical cord to that troublesome province. After all the suffering the people have gone through, the result of a nationwide referendum would overwhelmingly indicate that Britain should relinquish its relationship with Ulster for good. Northern Ireland's warring communities, when faced with the prospect of managing their own affairs, would have to lay down their arms and iron out their differences. The consequences of such a state of affairs could lead to lasting peace. So let Tony Blair work toward creating a new and independent state of Ulster. He will find this move toward peace more rewarding than the endless talks. ARUNESHWAR VICTOR DAVAR London

From the Time of the Czars

Russia's attitude toward Chechnya [LETTER FROM CHECHNYA, Feb. 21] has not changed at all since the Czars' outrageous conquest of the region long ago. We now witness the Russian army's attacks and razing of towns to the ground in order to leave the Chechens as unprotected as possible. We have begun the 21st century watching human-rights violations take place, while many are unmoved by so much violence and suffering. What about Amnesty International? And the United Nations? What are they for? I wonder what the cause of such international silence is. ANTONIO SOLINO Palma de Mallorca, Spain

Should Haider Be Feared?

People should bear in mind that 73% of Austrians did not vote for Jorg Haider and his Freedom Party [WORLD, Feb. 14]. And the vast majority of the 27% who did are not Nazis or racists, just people who were fed up with the former coalition government. The harsh reaction of the European Union is neither appropriate nor the product of a democratic decision. People will eventually realize Haider is just a populist and an opportunist whose only goal is to win elections. HARALD HANIK Graz, Austria

Considering Death Row

Re Margaret Carlson's criticism of Governor George W. Bush and the death penalty in Texas [PUBLIC EYE, Feb. 21]: The man who killed my husband's cousin and her friend is on death row in Texas. The two girls were stabbed more than 100 times. No, I won't be sorry when the murderer is strapped down to a padded gurney and an IV drip is started in his arm. Next time you do a piece on this subject, remember that the families and friends of those who have been killed are also waiting for justice, to see the killers held responsible. STEVIE BERG Cleburne, Texas

Is the system working when families go into emotional and economic ruin as they try to prove the innocence of a loved one who is on death row? Is our system working when a person's integrity and truthfulness have been so undermined that engulfing self-doubts rise up? I challenge our Javert-like prosecutors, our vote-hungry politicians and the Bible-twisting righteous to spend one month on death row with complete confidence that our system works. LOUISE STOWE-JOHNS Rockville Centre, N.Y.

Out of the Coffers

Your item on the Golden Globe Awards [NOTEBOOK, Feb. 21], which the Hollywood Foreign Press Association sponsors, implied that the money from the awards telecast goes to the coffers of this association and stays there. Please be advised that we are a nonprofit association and that we donate the bulk of our income to various causes--from film preservation to grants to students enrolled in film schools. Our total donations in 1999 amounted to $433,462, and over the past five years we have given away a total of $1,634,462. HELMUT VOSS, PRESIDENT Hollywood Foreign Press Association West Hollywood, Calif.

Teens on the Move

Walter Kirn hit the nail on the head in "Will Teenagers Disappear?" [VISIONS 21, Feb. 21]. Kirn noted that an adolescent with his or her own money is not a teenager but a "capitalist early bird out to get the worm." I am in the ninth grade, and I already have a yearly income of about $12,000. I own more than 20 websites and online businesses. At age 12, I was making more business decisions than many adults do. It makes me sick when my teachers treat me like an inferior who needs to be whipped into shape. We aren't living in the 1950s. Technology has put us far ahead. One day teenagers will disappear: we will be treated just like everyone else. JOEL HOLLAND, AGE 15 McLean, Va.

Though teenagers may not exist in 20 years, that's not to say this new breed of adults won't act like children. TODD HAWES, AGE 13 Newport Beach, Calif.

Visions of Tomorrow

I agree that there will be many technological and scientific advances in this century [VISIONS 21, Feb. 21], but I hardly want to believe our lives will be dominated by machines. I am going to be living most of my life in the 21st century, and I know for certain that I want to see the stars at night and hear the birds singing in the morning, not a picture or a recording. I'm sure I'm not the only person of my generation who feels this way. LINDSEY SWIACKI, AGE 14 Sewell, N.J.

I'm underwhelmed by your writers' visions of life in the 21st century. In their imaginings, "the future" seems a lot more like the present squared than anything remarkably new. Whatever is going to make the future feel like the future probably hasn't even been thought of yet, and that must be why such a diverse group of writers as you assembled couldn't seem to move beyond the conceptual iron maiden of the present. Maybe it would be better to stop trying to predict the future and just start living it. PETER VERTES Cleveland, Ohio

Peter Beinart's article "Will Politicians Matter?" suggests that Americans are returning to a broader and more traditional definition of politics as something that takes place in all walks of civic life, not merely inside the Beltway and the ballot booth. Such a concept seems to be closer to what Aristotle and other ancient philosophers, who viewed politics as applied ethics, had in mind. To the extent that we consider ourselves citizens, we must become politicians in the oldest and widest sense of the word--not only by voting and running for office but also by participating in the fast-growing social sector that Beinart ably described. SETH DUNN Washington

The Web: Wonderful, but...

Resorting to self-appointed internet experts described in "Web Know-It-Alls" [PERSONAL TIME: TECHNOLOGY, Feb. 21] strikes me as idiotic, particularly when queries took several hours to get helpful replies. Hours?! A less technological but far more authoritative approach would be to call the local public library for a quick answer. The Web is wonderful, but its limits are staggering. Sometimes the old ways are the best. JAMES J. MCPEAK Mayfield, Ohio

Abandoned Newborns

I read with horror and disgust your article about "Dumpster babies" and the new programs that offer a place where a mother can leave a baby and walk away [LAW, Feb. 21]. My rage is directed not at the mothers but at our puritanical, judgmental, self-serving society. This tragic phenomenon is the harvest of the views sown by the pro-lifers, who irresponsibly insist that a pregnancy must result in birth. I challenge pro-lifers to spend a week in an urban slum visiting homeless and unwanted children and seeing the quality of their lives. Perhaps the pro-lifers might then realize that choice is the only road toward a life worth living. MARCIA INGBER Boca Raton, Fla.

People should respect the abandonment of a baby as the desperate act it must be, and treat it as lifesaving rather than criminal behavior. NANCY AND KEVIN M. KELLY New Hartford, N.Y.

Money vs. Morals

A big tobacco-breath raspberry to Daniel Kadlec for advising investors that if they can "get past the moral issues, Philip Morris is a compelling stock" [PERSONAL TIME: YOUR MONEY, Feb. 21]. What are you going to tell us next? "Greed is good"? MICHAEL GILVARY Los Angeles