The Dalai Lama's Greatest Trial

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I was deeply moved by Pico Iyer's "A Monk's Struggle" [March 31]. Despite the Dalai Lama's half-century of exile and the erosion of Tibetan culture due to the Chinese occupation of Tibet, the Buddhist leader maintains his lucid and compassionate vision. In the face of Chinese oppression, the fact that he sees the advantages of China's modernizing influence and envisions an autonomous Tibet within Chinese borders is a testament to his infinite wisdom. If our next President and other world leaders could emulate the Dalai Lama's compassionate politics, the war on terror and the endless struggle for hegemony could be replaced by a more evolved multilateralism.
John Joseph, BOULDER, COLO., U.S.

Although I don't support the Chinese government's suppression of the Tibetan people's way of life, there is an amazing irony in the situation. If the Dalai Lama had been able to stay in Tibet and the Tibetans had been allowed to continue with their quiet ways, most of the rest of the world might never have heard of Tibetan Buddhism or been exposed to the teachings and leadership of this remarkable man and the philosophy he espouses. In a way, the Chinese government has been the most important marketing tool for Tibet and its leader. Because of the highly publicized clash, millions throughout the world know of and practice a Buddhist way of life.
Nancy Matela, PORTLAND, ORE., U.S.

It is apt that you featured a cover story on Tibet when the world is preparing to participate in the most prestigious international athletic event in China. The world community should pressure China to end its occupation of Tibet. As an Indian American, I'd like India to stop treating China as a brother and the U.S. to stop the hypocrisy of doing business with China while maintaining its embargo against Cuba.
Vishwanath Ayengar, WAPPINGERS FALLS, N.Y., U.S.

What Makes Terrorists Tick?
I read about forensic psychiatrist Marc Sageman's new book, Leaderless Jihad, with great interest [March 31]. I think Sageman fails to answer this basic question: If suicide bombers act out of a sense of social injustice rather than psychopathology, why do they so often target noncombatants, including children? What could be more unjust than the killing of the innocent? An alternative explanation is that we are dealing with a different kind of psychopath, a paranoid who sees himself as the victim and all Jews and Westerners as the demonic enemy and persecutor.
David Levinsky, BANDON, ORE., U.S.

Obama's Achilles' Heel?
Senator Barack Obama has previously told us that words matter, and the venomous, vitriolic and racially divisive words of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright are fraught with meaning of the most disturbing kind [March 31]. As your story observed, Obama failed to answer the central question that troubled American voters are asking: Why would Obama choose Wright to be his spiritual guide and personal mentor? And if Obama's candidacy is about the future, why would he expose his young daughters to such poisonous rhetoric of the past? Although he delivered his speech with his usual grace and eloquence, it's precisely what he didn't say that may speak volumes about his character and judgment.
David M. Petrou, WASHINGTON

Obama's speech was not unequivocal and certainly not healing for many Americans. As I talk to many of my friends and neighbors, I find people even more in doubt of his ability to lead us out of the national crises we are in (an unending war, a faltering economy). Joe Klein stated that he doubted whether many Americans could get past their "third" impression of Obama. For this voter, he is correct, but it is not because of my lack of "experience" with Obama. It is because of something very important that my parents taught me when I was a child: your character or lack of it will be judged by the company you keep. The fact that Obama held someone as racist as the Rev. Wright so close to himself for more than 20 years speaks not to lack of experience but to the truth of the man.
Ellen DeMaiolo, SALEM, OHIO, U.S.

The Bear's Mighty Fall
I read with dismay Justin Fox's "The Bear Trap," about the collapse of investment bank Bear Stearns [March 31]. The market crisis is especially unsettling because it is self-inflicted. Over the past two decades, through the crippling process of outsourcing, we have relinquished our leads in manufacturing, engineering and technology. If we lose our status as the world's financial beacon, we will surely inch closer to becoming a nation of two dimensions: a bloated military power that consumes voraciously and produces little.
Robert Winkelmann, AMITYVILLE, N.Y., U.S.