I just read your cover story on the next wave of high technology (“The New Digital Galaxy,” Science & Technology, May 31), and while I have been a daily Internet user for four years, I don’t want the Net emanating from every pore in my house. I don’t want my refrigerator to order food for me, or a computer in my toilet to examine my stool and talk to other computers about it behind my back. My life needs less technology, not more. Mark Asbury San Francisco, Calif.
My response to the language on your May 31 cover–“Technology: What You’ll Want Next”–is this: the only technological gadget I desire is one that will take reactionaries like me back a few decades. We want something we can never have: the relative peace and quiet, along with the slower pace, of days gone by. Inventors, take note: please hurry. I just can’t wait to get out of the ’90s and what appears to be coming to our planet in the next century. L. W. Minor Groton, N.Y.
I’m intrigued, amused and, yes, tempted by the possibilities for pervasive computing described in your article. However, I think your publication has a tendency to feature and promote technology with the intent of feeding our country’s affluent, extremely individualistic lifestyle. Why are we getting excited about developing technology that allows us to check e-mail in the car when we have yet to figure out how to distribute food and resources in a way that helps 1.5 billion people living in poverty? I’d like to see NEWSWEEK and others put more weight behind using technology to help solve the existing global problems before we start creating a new digital galaxy. Chris Hardie Richmond, Ind.
Your home of the future was impressive. Sadly, however, I noticed from the array of gardening tools hanging at the ready between the smart office and the smart vehicle that we will still have to go outside and rake leaves by hand in the new millennium. Wait a minute; maybe that’s a good thing. Jason Wacha San Carlos, Calif.
Who’s Behind the Y2K Bug?
There is a much simpler explanation for our obsession with Y2K (“Why Do We Buy the Myth of Y2K?” My Turn, May 31). There was such a hoopla about the coming millennium celebrations that the party poopers like us had to come up with the Y2K bug, which promises to shoot down all of you high-flying dudes on the big day. Surendra Kewala Livonia, Mich.
Guns and Money
Your small chart listing senators who voted with the NRA next to a column showing the gun lobby’s contributions to each of them (“Smoking Guns: A Status Report,” National Affairs, May 31) is the most valuable educational tool I have seen in NEWSWEEK. Every news story about congressional action in all areas should include a similar chart. Only then will the public wake up to what guides government policies on China, national parks and forests and other critical issues. The money flow to members of Congress is obscene–and, worse yet, routinely ignored by the press. Joy Rubin West Buxton, Maine
Let the Kids Copy Kobe
Thank you, Kobe Bryant, for setting a higher standard for young black men to follow (“Kobe Goes It Alone,” Society, May 31). As a white mother of two black sons, I’m always searching for positive black male role models for them to look up to. It is wonderful to see a young man on the verge of superstardom so composed and focused on family. Deana Hild Giles Manhattan Beach, Calif.
Kobe Bryant has always been one of my favorite basketball players, but as a result of your story, now I respect him even more. Despite the pressures of living a rich and famous life, Kobe has remained true to himself and his family. He is still young–let him grow up on his own. Jennifer Tyus Decatur, Ill.
High Marks for Heinz
After reading your article on the Leo Burnett ad agency’s campaign to market Heinz ketchup (“Pour On the Pitch,” Business, May 31), I couldn’t help noticing one glaring omission. In its desire to target “media-savvy teens” and stay away from slogans and “traditional product-touting,” agency staffers should have looked no farther than their mouths. My children (whose ages range from 5 to 16) have chided me into the extra expense of buying Heinz ketchup over other brands, simply because it tastes so much better. My ketchup connoisseurs can tell you in a heartbeat that Heinz definitely makes certain “host foods,” including mashed potatoes, fish, already-seasoned and grilled meats and, yes, even broccoli, edible. In our household, ketchup qualifies as its own food group. I’ll be very happy to continue buying Heinz, especially when the price is reduced, since I want to avoid the wrath of an adolescent ketchup revolt. If Heinz or its pitchmen need any help with future advertising, tell them to call us! Judy Haarer Columbia, Md.
Fiji Teens Take It Off
How sad that the teenage girls of Fiji, once proud of their full figures, now want to emulate the stick-thin American actresses they see via satellite TV (“Fat-Phobia in the Fijis: TV-Thin Is In,” Society, May 31). The creators of “Melrose Place” and similar programs would do wonders for adolescent girls everywhere if they hired some actresses who look like real women, not bony waifs. They aren’t just exporting entertainment; they’re infecting other cultures with American women’s weight obsession. Mary E. Nign Pasadena, Calif.
Can the Candidate Cook?
In your May 31 periscope item “Deep Freeze,” one of Elizabeth Dole’s advisers says, “There’ll be a lot of casseroles in the deep freezer for Bob.” As though we think she actually cooks–yeah, right. B. L. Wilson Portland, Ore.
Corrections
In a story on the JonBenet Ramsey case (Periscope, June 7), we said a judge ordered the Boulder, Colo., district attorney to give the Ramseys a copy of the tape of the 911 call made from their home the night of the little girl’s murder. The judge actually ordered that the tape, or parts of it, be released to the lawyer for JonBenet’s brother Burke.
In our May 31 story on gun control, “Aiming at Each Other,” we said a “smart gun” that could read fingerprints was being developed by Colt. The fingerprint technology is actually being researched by Oxford Micro Devices.
