Nearing the Finish Line

I was delighted to see Barack Obama's face on TIME's cover [May 19]. However, considering the American people's support of George W. Bush in the past two elections, and over the past seven years, aren't there enough reasons not to be so "pretty sure this time"? I am afraid that fear can still be a strong political weapon.
Adelaide Rodrigues, LISBON

Memo to Joe Klein: with several states yet to vote in primaries, putting Obama's picture on the cover with the headline "And the Winner* Is ..." is just irresponsible reporting.
A. Corona, CARMEL, CALIF., U.S.

As a Canadian and someone who has occasionally used your magazine in my classroom, I was shocked and dismayed by your most recent cover with Obama on it, along with the line, "And the Winner* Is ..." Your coverage has only served, north of the border, to illustrate how the media are no longer, if they ever truly were, dedicated to honest, unbiased coverage of events. You're not even pretending to honor that idea. I'll stick to Maclean's for my classroom material from now on. I am not naive enough to believe it is any different from TIME, but at least Maclean's is less obvious.
Alexa Fretz, KILLALOE, ONT., CANADA

Where Clinton Went Wrong
I'm surprised Karen Tumulty left out what I and many others consider to be Hillary Clinton's biggest mistake [May 19]. She voted for the war in Iraq and never fully apologized. Democratic primary voters and caucusgoers simply demanded accountability from their elected representatives.
James Bordonaro, EMPORIA, KANS., U.S.

Tragedy in Burma
It is absurd in such a catastrophe that the military junta has asked people to vote on a constitutional referendum called "discipline-flourishing democracy" [May 19]. It is equally appalling, while people are dying in the wake of the cyclone, to slow the arrival of relief workers. Too bad Burma has no oil. If it did, I'd bet America and its allies would find a way to solve the problem.
John C.M. Lee, HONG KONG

Gene-Screening
Michael Kinsley misses a long-term generational effect of perpetuating defective genomes [May 19]. As a former genetics graduate student, I've seen tragic outcomes when parents with inherited diseases (or propensities for them) decide to pass their genes on to future offspring. Sometimes this is done with ignorance, sometimes with hopeful fatalism, sometimes with contrarian determination to prove that "I really am quite O.K.!" Carrying deleterious genes is certainly not within the carrier's control, but dooming a not yet conceived child to receive them certainly is. Discrimination is not always a pejorative term.
John T. Lowry, AUSTIN, TEXAS, U.S.

Poland's Anne Frank
In reading the excerpts from Rutka Laskier's diary [May 5], once more the frightening thought occurs to me that the entire populations of Poland and Germany were in agreement with, and fully supported, Hitler's "final solution." Surely there were rallies, organized protests, etc., yet we are left with the impression that the average Pole or German simply shrugged his or her shoulders and went about his or her business. Please tell me I am wrong.
Irv Jacobs, LA MESA, CALIF., U.S.

A Bias Against China?
I was once again disappointed by TIME's biased report [May 5], "Why China's Burning Mad." The root cause of so much dissatisfaction among the Chinese people is the sense of being treated unfairly by Western media. Sadly, in Western democracies there is hardly anyone to speak for China. While Westerners who have never traveled to China to see the reality for themselves make their criticisms, almost no scholar or policymaker from mainland China has ever had a chance to represent their view in the Western media. There is a great need for the Western media, the Chinese government and Chinese citizens to have constructive dialogues, so as to build a mutual understanding. After all, the West needs China as much as China needs the West.
Zhong Guoren, SINGAPORE

Deathday Wishes
I applaud Nancy Gibbs' article about the death of her father [May 5]. I am a trained nurse and have seen many lonely deaths in hospitals and nursing homes. My mother passed away three years ago at the age of 92, and I was lucky enough to have been there to see her and talk to her before she became unconscious. Perhaps us children being there with her before she died gave us some peace. But I and my sisters and brothers still miss our Mum, and my eldest sister is 72 years old!
Patrick Kwai-sum Poon, BURTON-ON-TRENT, ENGLAND

The poignant essay by Gibbs is an insightful account of a good death. Making it comfortable for the dying person and getting the family, including children, to understand death are experiences which doctors can learn from in caring for their dying patients.
Dr. Ee Heok, SINGAPORE

What irked me about Gibbs' article on death was the lack of reference to God and an afterlife. It's a lot harder to confront death and celebrate our "Deathday" if we choose to ignore God.
David Scallon, BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND

A Race to the End
I think the current race is the best, most riveting election campaign I have witnessed as an adult [May 5]. I'm 56. Never before have I seen a primary campaign come down to the wire like this year's Democratic contest. Back in January I was hoping for the same thing on the Republican side. Sure, hard-fought contests are bruising for all concerned, but I believe the nation will be better off next January because of the election fights that took place this year. Now if only we could shorten the campaign season.
Dave Peterson, TUCSON, ARIZ., U.S.

When my 5-year-old, an ardent Hillary supporter, saw your Obama/Clinton cover, she combined the names Barack and Hillary and got Barackary. She then noted that Barackary sounds like broccoli and offered, "We don't like it, but it is good for us."
Jason Petri, GREEN RIVER, WYO., U.S.