Inbox

No credible fitness expert would argue that one can lose weight through exercise alone, but the tone of your article was unnecessarily discouraging. If people use exercise as an excuse to eat poorly, that's a lack of discipline, not a "myth" about exercise.

NANCY MELUCCI, SACRAMENTO, CALIF.

DEC. 7 "THE MAMMOGRAM MELEE"

Re the new recommendations to delay routine mammograms until age 50: Here's a riddle. If a woman is denied a mammogram at 40 and dies at 45 of breast cancer, how much money does her insurance company save?

CHRISTINE HUMMEL, ST. ANN, MO.

... and Health Care

MARCH 16 "THE HEALTH CARE CRISIS HITS HOME"

Re Karen Tumulty's story about her "underinsured" brother: Ironically, if Patrick Tumulty had decided to retaliate against his insurance company's executives with physical violence, he would now be in our penal system, with full medical benefits.

RICHARD CLARK III, ADELL, WIS.

JUNE 15 "THE 5 BIG HEALTH CARE DILEMMAS"

Missing from TIME's list of players who will decide the fate of health care--lawmakers, lobbyists, even Walmart--is a key group: those who work long hours to cure what ails Americans, just so they can spend more time wrestling with insurance companies and dodging trial lawyers. Your list left out the doctors--which is exactly how I've felt for my 14 years of practice.

MICHAEL A. KELLAMS, CARMEL, IND.

Battle Zones

APRIL 13 "THE DARK SIDE OF RECRUITING"

I find it hard to put into words the depth of my outrage at the Army for its actions toward its recruiters, which drive dedicated soldiers to suicide. I have no doubt the Army will deny responsibility and take no meaningful corrective action. My pride as a veteran has suffered yet another wound.

DAVID J. DOYEN, LANDENBERG, PA.

OCT. 12 "A WINDOW ON THE WAR"

Adam Ferguson's photography from Afghanistan brought it all back home. Medevacs, sentries monitoring the perimeter, soldiers shaving with whatever was available--Vietnam all over again. I hope our nation's decision makers review his work.

BRYCE SANDERS, CLARKSVILLE, TENN.

NOV. 23 "TERRIFIED ... OR TERRORIST?"

Perhaps the best way to convey the horror of the Fort Hood massacre would have been not to put the face of a killer on your cover but to share photos of his many victims.

MARY SCHARTAU, BROOKLYN, N.Y.

All in the Family

JULY 13 "WHY MARRIAGE MATTERS"

TIME grossly understates the complexity of the causes of infidelity and divorce in the U.S. Your writer misses the point that when the failings of one or both parents make for a miserable environment for their children, it is more sadistic to stay together than to divorce and try again.

GEORGE KALMAR, PACIFIC PALISADES, CALIF.

JULY 20 "THE MELANCHOLY OF MOTHERHOOD"

TIME showed an utter lack of understanding about the seriousness of postpartum depression. It affects millions and impairs functioning; it is not a "difficult period." Fewer than half of cases are recognized, and fewer of those women ever get help.