Letters: Jan. 16, 2006

The Best Photos of 2005 Reflecting a year marked conspicuously by natural and human disasters, our selection of pictures made many readers think we had overlooked the year's sunnier moments. But for others, the images underscored photography's power to convey reality and renew perspective on life's trials—and gifts

"These pictures speak to each of us on many different levels, evoking awe, horror, compassion and hope all at the same time." SHANA RUSONIS Ellicott City, Md. How often do those who have the good fortune to be comfortable, safe and secure take their situation for granted? Your collection, "The Best Photos of 2005," serves as a humbling reminder of the fragility of the human condition [Dec. 19]. In juxtaposing our vulnerability to Mother Nature's wrath with our suffering and violence at the hands of fellow human beings, those images of death and destruction do more than etch a small piece of history into our minds; they carve out in our hearts a warning for the future. JEFF MICHAUD East Hartford, Conn.

I cannot recall another year that brought such human misery. Whether caused by nature or man, the events depicted in your collection reminded me how truly awful 2005 was. May the human family look forward to some small measure of joy in 2006. ROBERT D. RAUCH Bayside, N.Y.

As I looked at the photos, I thought I should never again complain about having to wait in line an extra minute or two or having to shovel a snowy walkway or gripe when a store is out of my favorite item. The next time I get upset over trivial everyday things, I should step back and look at the big picture. JEFFREY N. ACHBER Laconia, N.H.

Your editors enhanced the nation's misery index in smashing style with the overwhelming number of pictures that were a stark visualization of ugliness, suffering and pain. Didn't any of your photographers catch a pear tree blossoming? A wren scolding? A schoolboy playing? JOHN F. WALDRON Virginia Beach, Va.

Kudos for having the guts to print the full, unretouched image of Army Specialist Matthew Braddock, an amputee recovering from injuries he suffered in Iraq. Too much of the truth about this war has been doctored. PHIL SIPOS Richfield, Ohio

Your photos of the year prove that 2005 was a devastating time for most of the world. My eye was caught by the picture of the London bus mangled by a bomb explosion. Ironically, the remnants of a theater or movie advertisement on the side of the bus read, OUTRIGHT TERROR ... BOLD AND BRILLIANT. EMILIO A. SCHLABITZ Culver City, Calif.

What striking photos you picked! What an amazing year! I don't remember being so affected by a series of magazine pictures since the tumultuous year of 1968. The image shown on the cover, of the New Orleans Garden District aflame, reminded me of a Currier & Ives lithograph. Despite my dislike for the war in Iraq, especially for all the dissembling by politicians that got us into it, I couldn't help feeling a twinge of patriotic pride upon seeing the photo of an Iraqi woman voting. ALEXANDER WELLS Los Angeles

The Elusive Father Figure