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Thursday, Jan. 17, 2008
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Leading Russia into the Future
Since you acknowledge that Person of the Year Vladimir Putin has distinguished himself by "choosing order before freedom," I wonder why you didn't select President George W. Bush a third time for his choosing safety from terrorism before terrorists' rights [Dec. 31, 2007–Jan. 7, 2008]. No, TIME would much rather recognize a virtual dictator for his supposed achievements: violently suppressing dissent, crushing the free press and heading a regime that has been accused of murdering opponents and expropriating private property for the state. On the other hand, TIME loves to natter on about how Gitmo prisoners should be granted U.S. constitutional freedoms, privileges and rights because they happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time during a war. You have lost all perspective and are (quite literally) incredible.
Paul Burich,
Los Gatos, Calif., U.S.

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Your article about Putin was informative and insightful. I find him more honest and certainly more intelligent than Bush. Your article mentioned that the people of Russia are willing to give up some of their freedoms for stability. I would make the case that many Americans are also willing to give up freedoms for security.
Eddie Staples,
Aurora, Colo., U.S.

Bravo, TIME, for the year-end wrap-up and Person of the Year selection. Putin has so far served his country well, but he reminds me of the classic Western movie sheriff who is brought in to clean up a town and then becomes a bigger bad guy than the bad guys he was asked to eliminate. Putin was weaned by the KGB, and I anticipate the worst from him. His very expression is off-putting. I'm 80 years old, not a profane person and quite benign in my declining years. But when I opened the magazine and saw that low-angle shot of Putin, I impulsively shouted a curse, like an uncouth youth.
Andrew Halmay,
Toronto

Putin comes across as a leader of great character and vision. In years to come, the Putin era will be a case study of how to use oil riches. Surely many oil-producing countries in the Middle East can learn valuable lessons about ways to use petrodollars that don't involve supporting terrorist organizations.
Sudarshan Kumar Singh,
Nainital, India

In explaining how the influence game is played in Putin's Russia, you quoted an insider who referred to "money that the politicians raise quietly from corporate 'sponsors' that expect special treatment in return." Golly, the Russians are becoming as democratic as we are.
Harry Torgerson,
Great Falls, Mont., U.S.

Your selecting Putin as POY certainly surprised me. I was expecting Al Gore or maybe someone else. However, your choice was correct. Recognition of Putin as a world leader has been long overdue. The West needs to engage him and work with him, not against him. Russia's importance in the world cannot be ignored. The country still has a big nuclear arsenal and substantial oil reserves. This is not the cold war. It is the 21st century.
Majid Rauf,
Lahore, Pakistan

I wish you had chosen Nobel Peace Prize winner and former U.S. Vice President Al Gore for raising the world's awareness of the dangers caused by global warming and climate change. We must all act together and pool resources to save the planet.
Jim Victa Hipolito,
Kawit, The Philippines

Why did you characterize Putin, the savior of Russia, as "Tsar of the New Russia"? He has done much to develop Russia's economy and its ties with other countries; he has brought about widespread stability. Tsars were lazy, useless, upper-class leaders who dictated to everyone. Putin has instead proved diligent and well loved by many Russians.
Victor Looi Yi En,
Singapore

Putin has a strategic vision for his country, as Henry Kissinger noted in your interview. While Putin's place in history is still a matter of speculation, the resurgence of Russia is not. It isn't clear whether Russia will become a full-fledged democracy, but it is already much freer than countries like China. It is not by chance that svoboda — freedom — is a much celebrated word in Russia today.
Pedro Paulo A. Funari, Head,
Center for Strategic Studies,
State University of Campinas,
Campinas, Brazil

I was so happy to see that chinese President Hu Jintao was a runner-up. I think China has been transformed by Deng Xiaoping's exhortation that "to get rich is glorious," but it is Hu who would like to create a more equitable society by narrowing the gap between rich and poor to create a harmonious society in which every Chinese can share in the wealth of economic growth. Hu has successfully built a good image of China's peaceful rise and expanded China's reach around the world during the past five years. His confidence and wisdom in handling internal and external affairs is a marvelous asset that will eventually encourage the Chinese people to accelerate political reform.
Song Xiaowen,
Zhongli City, Taiwan

Maximum-Security Manger
Like Jamil Hamad, I too bemoan the changes that have transformed Bethlehem [Dec. 31, 2007–Jan. 7, 2008]. I do so as a former Israeli soldier who had the honor of guarding the Church of the Nativity when the city was still under Israeli control. But I take issue with a number of subtle insinuations in Hamad's article. He was critical of the security checkpoints, but since the city is no longer under Israeli control, why should the crossing into Israel be different from those between the U.S. and Canada or Mexico, for instance? Hamad also took issue with the Israeli security wall but failed to mention that it was put in place to stop suicide bombers from crossing and snipers from shooting at apartments in the southern part of Jerusalem. When I was stationed in Bethlehem in the mid-1980s, the Christian population was thriving, and tourists arrived by the busload throughout the year, not just at Christmastime. One needs to ask what the difference is between then and now.
Aron B. Safran,
Willow Street, Pa., U.S.

What an odd article. It left the impression that the Israeli security fence is somehow responsible for the tensions between Bethlehem's Christians and Muslims and the emigration of Hamad's Christian friends. Unmentioned was the unremitting pressure from Islamic extremists to purge the city of its Christian residents. Christians have been murdered in Bethlehem, families driven into exile and the Church of the Nativity used as a fortress by Islamic gangs. And all Hamad could bring himself to mention are the wall and checkpoints.
Daniel Polish,
Poughkeepsie, N.Y., U.S.

Hamad said Christmas in Bethlehem makes him lonely. Religion made me lonely. One of my parents was a Hindu, the other a Catholic. I went to services of both faiths from time to time. My ex-wife persuaded me to become a Presbyterian, and now I am an agnostic. Religion has become a tool of intolerance, and extremism is now the norm. Humanism has been forgotten.
Robert R. Mittoo,
Calgary, Canada