Letters

The Unpresidented Election

"If the Democrats spend the next four years training their supporters how to punch a ballot, they may have less trouble in 2004." CALVIN WHEELER Auburn, Wash.

On your cover you asked, "Is this any way to run an election?" [Nov. 27]. My answer is yes. It's exactly how to run an election--without violence or the threat of violence and in a civilized manner that should be the envy of the world. BRUCE STARK New York City

The fiasco of this election has left many of us staring at the television screen, mouth agape, seriously wondering, If we had it to do again, would we fight the lines at our voting station as we did that Tuesday morning? The laws and statutes established to decide the outcome of a close election obviously carry no weight for either candidate. Let the people's voice be heard. TRACI ORTIZ Royal Oak, Mich.

Why do we spend millions on political campaigns but refuse to invest in modern, voter-friendly universal ballot machines? In 2001 the President and Congress should immediately address the voting process so that a tainted election can never happen again. Spending money to implement a proper nationwide voting system is much more important than wasting billions of dollars on an unworkable missile-defense system. PAUL L. WHITELEY SR. Louisville, Ky.

It is wrong for Americans to relentlessly denounce countries that conduct elections that we deem to be unfair, fraudulent or illegal, yet when the same circumstances arise in our own country, assume partisan positions and pursue arguments that evade these very issues. The example we set will last much longer than the next President's term. DAVE BARKER Chicago

Dear Santa, here's my christmas wish list, with decidedly political overtones: 1) Internet voting to be made available countrywide. 2) A nationwide mandate for optically scanned paper ballots where Internet voting is not possible. 3) Dissolution of the Electoral College.

Santa, I would have asked for something more routine, like world peace, but a few more achievable changes might be better. And yes, I've been a good boy this year--I voted by mail in advance! SCOTT HUME Phoenix, Ariz.

The real culprit in this election is the antiquated and ineffective technology used to tabulate votes. We need to fix the problem. Congress could suggest a standard ballot and voting equipment. This polarized society that we have been drawn into by our political "leaders" is counterproductive. We are Americans, first and foremost. JAMES R. CLARK Waldo, Ark.

Colombian Commandant

For years, Carlos Castano and his paramilitary death squads have sown terror among civilians in rural areas of Colombia [WORLD, Nov. 27]. Castano's United Self-Defense Forces, the self-appointed exterminators of leftist rebels, label civilians as guerrilla sympathizers and thus make them "legitimate" targets of brutal attacks. Your article's semiheroic depiction of Castano failed to mention that he is responsible for the murder of dozens of peasants, indigenous leaders, union workers, academics, journalists and human-rights activists. JAUME VIDAL CASANOVAS ANA MARIA GOMEZ LOPEZ Washington

While reading about Castano, I could not help thinking that the cure was worse than the disease. MICHAEL D. MOLOHON Daytona Beach, Fla.

Voting Legalities

In your story about what the moderates from both political parties might do in the new 107th Congress [ELECTION 2000, Nov. 27], you stated that I, along with Republican Tom DeLay, had circulated a memo "saying Congress has the authority to block Al Gore from taking office even if Florida certifies a vote showing him ahead." That statement is simply wrong. Nor have I ever asserted, as you said, that "members of Congress can reject a state's electoral votes if they believe they are invalid." Not only did I not circulate such a memo, I do not agree with and have never advocated either of these positions. I did send out a memo setting forth the legal basis and citing case-law authority in support of George W. Bush's position. That memo, based on my experience practicing election law for a decade, is available on my website www.house.gov/shadegg) JOHN SHADEGG, U.S. REPRESENTATIVE 4th District, Arizona Washington

Representative Shadegg is correct, and we apologize.

The World Was Watching

With Americans' penchant for excess, it's very fitting that it cost $3 billion to discover that half of you are Democrats and the other half Republicans [ELECTION 2000, Nov. 27]. ROBERT FLETCHER Kincardine, Canada

What a fiasco! So when are some of the stars on the Stars and Stripes going to be replaced by bananas? RAYMOND DE LA GRANGE Nice, France

Despite humor about banana republics or the need for U.N. observers, America is doing the right thing. Exposing and examining widespread electoral inadequacies do not shame America; accepting them would. NORMAN RICHARD BASSETT Manchester, England

Some of us in Africa feel we have been pressured, even bullied by the U.S. into adopting its version of democracy. We believed the most advanced country in the world would have an educated electorate. Now we see that the leader of the U.S. is voted for by people who are not even able to read a ballot successfully. One has to wonder if these voters understand the issues. It would be better if every ballot contained a number of questions pertinent to what people are voting on. Then each vote would have a weighted value relative to the number of correct answers. This would be the beginning of meritocracy. ANDRE KRUGER Erasmia, South Africa

The main pillars of democracy are discussion and debate. This process, naturally, slows down the resolution of any problem. What has happened in the U.S. is proof that democracy has matured and is alive and well. HASSAN E. MOHAMED Calgary

One of the first things the new U.S. President should do is reform the election system. It would be naive to assume that the rest of the country is immune to the type of problems that occurred in Florida. As we've seen, other states have had difficulties too. I fully respect the independence enjoyed by the states, but surely in a nationwide process such as deciding who will sit in the White House, there should be uniformity across the country. Every single vote should count. LEIF G. ROMELL Alderley Edge, England

Americans should contact Brazilian authorities about how to conduct an election. In October we had municipal elections nationwide involving about 100 million voters. The polling was totally electronic (no paper votes), even in small towns. The results were available in less than 24 hours with no trouble. DELTO MENOZZI TEIXEIRA Sao Paulo, Brazil

Finally the fallacy of American democracy has been unmasked, revealing to the whole world that the government "of the people, by the people and for the people" is sheer baloney. In the next U.S. presidential election, the world community should send observers to make sure the whole process takes place without any irregularities. Brazil should cash in and export thousands of its electronic ballot boxes to teach Uncle Sam how to count votes. MARCILIO AFONSO Recife, Brazil

After months and months of being subjected to George W. Bush and Al Gore, the voters were left with a debacle. What's next? U.N. monitors? Perhaps that would be better than handing the election over to the lawyers. IVAN L. BRACKIN Yoron Island, Japan

The imperfect vote-counting system has proved that Americans are just human. Any claims of U.S. superiority now sound hollow. PRAVIN SHAH Addis Ababa

Henceforth, let no American analyze with condescension any other country's elections that are marked by protests and recounts. I trust that Americans now see that such events are the simple manifestations of democracy at work. RENE VALDES Baguio City, the Philippines

Readers' Choices

TIME should choose as its person of the Year Linus Torvalds, who developed Linux, the source code of which has been given to the world free of charge. The operating system is maintained by thousands of programmers around the world and is a viable alternative to Microsoft Windows. Torvalds created a community made possible only by the Internet. WAYNE LABS Broomall, Pa.

Mexico's new president, Vicente Fox, overcame his country's long-ruling P.R.I. government through a peaceful, democratic process and, more important, proved that the selfish interests of an entrenched nobility will never triumph over the will of the people. BARAK LURIE Los Angeles

Vojislav Kostunica gained people's confidence in a peaceful, democratic and legitimate way. LYUBOMIR T. GRUYITCH Belfort, France

My selection is South Korean President Kim Dae Jung, because he took an important step in resolving one of the final stalemates of the cold war. RAHUL GHOSH Calcutta, India