Letters

Where the System Broke Down

Our stories on the confusion that marked the response of Federal, state and local governments to Hurricane Katrina drew mail from readers who found fault at all levels. Some who wrote, however, argued against finger pointing, while others hoped the disaster would teach citizens a lesson in civics

Thank you for "4 Places Where the System Broke Down" [Sept. 19]. You provided balanced reporting on how officials responded to Hurricane Katrina. The recovery efforts by the Federal Government were disorganized and sluggish. The disaster has revealed the inefficiency of bureaucracy in times of crisis. FEMA [the Federal Emergency Management Agency] was ill prepared to handle the magnitude of the devastation. Its incompetent performance under the leadership of Michael Brown, who had no credentials or experience, reflects poorly on President George W. Bush, who was responsible for Brown's appointment. The majority of the blame, though, lies with local officials. New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin has a lot to answer for. Much of the grief his city experienced could have been prevented by responsible preparation.

BEN ROBINSON Montgomery, Ala.

TIME's cover headline, "System Failure," suggested a self-deception as old as humankind. There was no system available. Believing that government agencies, however competent, can prevent human suffering and loss only causes more of both.

PETER L. SLOAN New York City

It is easy to assign blame for the Katrina relief fiasco--there are plenty of targets. It is much harder to accept responsibility. What went wrong? The American people persist in voting for political demagogues who promise them continued services for lower taxes. Government is not, despite what Ronald Reagan claimed, the problem. Nor is it, as others have asserted, a beast that must be starved. Government is society's means to collectively address problems that are too large or costly for individuals to handle. In a democracy, the people get the government they deserve. By choosing lower taxes and minimal services, we now have only the precarious protection of a hobbled government.

STEVE KRAUS Forestville, Calif.

Abraham Lincoln understood what post--Civil War Reconstruction would demand. Franklin Roosevelt understood what recovery from the Depression would require. This President doesn't seem to understand what recuperating from Katrina is all about. I wish he were as interested in helping the country come to grips with it as he appears to be in saving his own political skin.

DAVID OLIVER Kansas City, Mo.

The blame for the Katrina tragedy lies with the people who chose to live in the devastated region. The idea of living below sea level in a hurricane-prone area is insane. People should make better choices. I hope, against all probability, that New Orleans and other flooded areas are not rebuilt. It would be a waste of lives, resources and money.

WALTER JEFFRIES West Topsham, Vt.

Make no mistake about it: Hurricane Katrina didn't destroy New Orleans; the breaches in the levees did. Maybe it's time the U.S. government spent its money on what is broken in our own country rather than trying to fix things in other nations far away.

NANCY H. BABENDIR Skokie, Ill.

I can tell you who is responsible for the incompetent Katrina recovery operation: government, at all levels. But the real question is not who is to blame but how changes can be made so that this never happens again. Finger pointing doesn't solve any problems.

RYAN LUM Ottawa

If there is a silver lining to Katrina and the botched efforts to help its victims, it is that we have got our wake-up call. Americans elected an insulated, not too astute President who is surrounded by yes-men and -women. His inflexibility cripples him when events beyond his control demand a new direction.

BETTY HATWIG El Dorado Hills, Calif.

Why try to assign blame? If we expended half as much effort in attempting to learn from the Katrina disaster as we have in trying to find whom or what to blame, more people would be out of danger and beginning to rebuild their lives.

JUDITH HEINEMAN Phoenix, Ariz.

The Wretched and the Dead

Your Katrina photo essay "Ghost Town" [Sept. 19] featured a reprehensible picture of a lifeless body floating face-down in the contaminated muck of New Orleans. That was disrespectful to the dead and their families. You may have intended to show readers the horrors of Katrina, but it was shock journalism.

MICHAEL YONKER Portland, Ore.

Learning from New Orleans

I am a 62-year-old white woman responding to the pitch-perfect words of my black brother Wynton Marsalis. In his Essay "Saving America's Soul Kitchen" [Sept. 19], he wrote, "We always back away from fixing our nation's racial problems. Not fixing the city's levees before Katrina struck will now cost us untold billions. Not resolving the nation's issues of race and class has and will cost us so much more." America, listen to those words. If the cries of human suffering don't move us, perhaps enlightened self-interest will. Whatever the motivation, we must act now.

NICOLE DAINES GIBEAUT Fallbrook, Calif.

Marsalis' Essay struck a chord; in addition to his musical talents, he has amazing insight. Perhaps musicians share an understanding that easily transcends racial and class lines. Musicians appreciate something that treats race, gender and religion as being incidental. Marsalis is right on the mark. Maybe if enough people speak out, as he has, they will pierce the tone-deaf arrogance of the powerful.

PETER PIASKOSKI Milwaukee, Wis.

Inhuman Intervention

Your report about China's use of forced abortions and sterilizations as part of its one-child policy [Sept. 19] painted a horrific picture. Congratulations to brave legal activist Chen Guangcheng, who, despite being blind and living under the threat of personal danger, has worked unselfishly to file a class action against officials to protect women and children. His dedication is something that anyone can respect and strive to emulate.

CAROL E. ST. AMAND Ludlow, Mass.

Chinese women are forced by local officials officials to undergo abortions so bureaucrats can meet party requirements and advance their political careers. Government and local leaders do not care about the quality of life of these women. I admire the activism of Chen and hope that other Chinese will join in the fight for the health of the women and their children--born or unborn.

ILEANA SANSANO Ann Arbor, Mich.

No doubt many readers are as disgusted as I by China's use of coerced sterilization and abortion. But perhaps we should temper our shock by recognizing that China, with more than 20% of the earth's population, has a real and extremely serious population problem for which there may not be any painless or entirely humane solutions. The Chinese have a collective cultural memory of famine and mass starvation. We need to be aware of the reasons for China's population-control policies.

JOHN COFFEE Marietta, Ga.

I was horrified by your story. How can any government justify such barbaric treatment? I understand the need for China to curb population growth, but that surely could be accomplished in a more humane way.

LYNN HALL Williamsburg, Ohio

She's Baaack!

My response to TIME's "10 Questions" interview with ex-convict Martha Stewart, whom you described as "the indomitable domestic diva" [Sept. 19], is simply this: Crime does pay.

MARY INGRAM Asheville, N.C.

For Stewart to err, as the saying goes, was human. To forgive her is divine. But to glorify her is ridiculous.

ARTHUR LEVY Worthington, Ohio