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The last thing we need right now is hatred. America's greatest strength (and greatest asset) is our freedom and diversity, both of which are easily diminished, if not destroyed, by hatred. MICHAEL TIEMANN Chapel Hill, N.C.
An Early Nomination
The men and women who are civil servants in New York City should be chosen as TIME's People of the Year. There should be no other contenders! JENNIFER L. BEHRINGER Berkeley, Ill.
Painting a True Picture
Thank you so much for publishing such an excellent Special Issue. The articles dispelled many of the rumors that were circulating, and the graphics and the timeline of attacks were easy to understand. True, the photographs were heartbreaking, but they were very powerful. More than once I found myself choking up, but they painted a true picture of events that day in downtown Manhattan. Keep up the great work. CHRISTIN PERRINE Damascus, Md.
Our children may have finally learned from this devastating experience that America's true heroes are not rock stars and athletes. KELLEY SANDERSON Colorado Springs, Colo.
Like Legendary Heroes
When I was at school, we had a picture of Leonidas and his Spartans blocking the pass at Thermopylae against a huge Persian army. The Spartans knew that they would be killed, but stood fast. Now it seems possible that three or more American men, passengers on hijacked Flight 93, who knew that they were going to die, rushed their hijackers before the terrorists reached their objective. These Americans were as brave as any heroes of legend. This cool courage is one crucial ingredient in dealing with terrorists. The time for being cowards and mere survivors is over. J. STEPHEN CRIDLAND Observatory, South Africa
Spirit Raiser
The article on TIME's choice of T.D. Jakes as America's Best Preacher focused too much on Jakes' style rather than his substance, which is what really counts [AMERICA'S BEST, Sept. 17]. You failed in your report to portray Jakes as a great teacher, father figure, brother, coach, economic adviser, marriage counselor, mentor, friend and, most important, a brave champion in the battle of spiritual warfare. Jakes helps turn males into men, women into ladies, prisoners into ministers and cultural Christians into God's servants. JOHN DAVID GARZA Dallas
Jakes may be able to pack a stadium with his preaching, but that seems to be the only similarity he has with Billy Graham. Jakes justifies his lavish lifestyle by saying that Jesus "must have been rich to support his disciples." May Jakes put his emphasis on the plain preaching of the Gospel of Christ rather than on "ornate call-and-response cues and dramatic eruptions." Have we not had enough disappointments from those wealthy televangelist preachers of the 1980s? L. HOYT GRIFFITH Wirtz, Va.
Correction
Our story on how the makers of attention-deficit/hyperactivity-disorder medications are advertising their products direct to consumers [HEALTH, Sept. 10] bore the headline "New Ritalin Ad Blitz Makes Parents Jumpy." While a number of pharmaceutical companies are running consumer ads, contrary to what the headline states, Novartis, the maker of Ritalin, has never had a direct-to-consumer advertising campaign for its medication. TIME regrets the error.