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After reading your forecasts for the future and Lev Grossman's article "The Quest for Cool" [WHAT'S NEXT, Sept. 8], I've concluded that I have never been cool, I have no desire to ever be cool, and those who think they are cool really aren't.
ROB NANCE
Westerville, Ohio

LATEST COVER STORY Mind & Body Happiness Jan. 17, 2004 Past Issues Tsunami Jan. 10, 2004 ----------------- Person of the Year Jan. 3, 2004 ----------------- Secrets of the Nativity Dec. 13, 2004 ----------------- The Stealth Killer Dec. 6, 2004 ----------------- Coolest Inventions Nov. 29, 2004 ----------------- Battle for Fallujah Nov. 22, 2004 ----------------- Four More Years Nov. 15, 2004 ----------------- The Joy Of Sox Nov. 8, 2004 ----------------- The Morning After Nov. 1, 2004 ----------------- The God Gene Oct. 25, 2004 ----------------- The Vote Battle Oct. 18, 2004 ----------------- Visions of Tomorrow Oct. 11, 2004 ----------------- The Tragedy of Sudan Oct. 4, 2004 ----------------- CBS Controversy Sept. 27, 2004 ----------------- America's Border Sept. 20, 2004 ----------------- Struggle Within Islam Sept. 13, 2004 ----------------- World of George Bush Sept. 6, 2004 -----------------   SPECIAL REPORTS  Coolest Video Games 2004  Coolest Inventions  Wireless Society  Cool Tech 2004 PHOTOS AND GRAPHICS  At The Epicenter  Paths to Pleasure  Quotes of the Week  This Week's Gadget  Cartoons of the Week More graphics >> More photos >> MORE STORIES Advisor: Rove Warrior The Bushes: Family Dynasty Klein: Benneton Ad Presidency More Stories >> CNN.com: Latest News

The professional trend spotters you interviewed tell us that burlesque will be cool, we will do everything from our cars, and cell phones will be the means for transactions of all types. If this is the cool future, then send me back to the square past! Of course, almost 40 years ago, Paul Revere and the Raiders sang that "kicks just keep getting harder to find." The youth of every generation has its moments of temporary insanity, but for any society to thrive and move forward, there must be a genuine awareness of and respect for the past. If we Americans keep pushing the envelope in an increasingly outrageous quest for the ultimate, cutting-edge in cool, then I'm afraid our future will take us down the same path of decadence chosen by great societies that are now only history.
BARBARA ISENBERG
Royal Palm Beach, Fla.

Predictions of future trends reminded me of my college days in the late '50s. We were told that by the end of the 20th century, we would all be working a three-day week and our biggest problem would be finding something to do with all our spare time.
DAVID R. REAGAN
Allen, Texas

The cool your trend spotters talked about is the cool that MTV and the teen media are trying to shove down the throat of mainstream America. One of your experts surveyed young people in shopping malls to find out what is and isn't cool. Once something is mass-marketed and available in malls everywhere, it has lost its edge. I'm not cool, but I'm practical and not some dunce who follows every latest trend simply because it is the latest trend.
MATTHEW CARUSO
Valencia Calif.

Is it not painfully obvious, even tragic, that our obsession with "what's next" denies us a full appreciation of the special moments that are happening now?
JOHN R. THURSTON
Eau Claire, Wis.

If the so-called trend spotters sell their insights in newsletters for thousands of dollars, I'd like to check some back issues to find out how accurate they have been. Perhaps a review would show that the clued in are really clueless. Anyone want to buy a cool bridge?
SID KASKEY
South Miami, Fla.

Give the Armor to Arnold

"Coming Attractions" reported that Brad Pitt will portray the great warrior Achilles in Troy, the new film version of The Iliad [WHAT'S NEXT: ARTS, Sept. 8]. Please say it isn't so! I'd rather see Arnold Schwarzenegger as Achilles and Pitt as a candidate for California Governor.
BOB DOLAN
Fullerton, Calif.

Terror in Najaf
The terrorist attack on the Shi'ite mosque in Najaf, Iraq, may have worked out surprisingly well for its perpetrators [WORLD, Sept. 8]. It created a big dent in the American plans for Iraq. It drove a wedge between America and the Shi'ite majority and scared off Iraqis who had been willing to collaborate with the U.S. It also proved that the Shi'ites still have no protector in Iraq. The best response for the U.S. is to shrink the goals of its mission. The old regime has been eliminated. Leave Iraq to the Iraqis; empower them to make their own decisions.
OMAR MINYAWI
Latham, N.Y.

There is no such entity as "the Iraqi people." They are Shi'ites, Sunnis, Kurds and so forth. Violence was a way of life under Saddam Hussein's regime. It is not possible for outsiders to do what is necessary to keep peace in the region, nor would the international community approve. Nation building must be a responsibility shared by many countries; it is a no-win proposition for the U.S. Yet pulling out is unthinkable. Having the U.N. join the effort in Iraq with U.S. oversight is the wisest course.
DAN CROSS
Broken Arrow, Okla.

Return of the Taliban
I was glad to see Phil Zabriskie's story on the conflict in Afghanistan, "That Other War" [WORLD, Sept. 8]. The U.S. needs to address what options are available to fight Taliban fundamentalists and al-Qaeda terrorists hiding out in Pakistan, where the U.S. is seemingly unable to attack them. We must find a way to remove that safe haven, or we risk their harassing us to death.
GREGORY ALLISON
Jackson, Tenn.

The resurgence of the Taliban comes as no surprise. The Bush Administration turned its back on Afghanistan and neglected to pursue al-Qaeda in favor of waging an unjustified preventive war against Iraq. The fruits of these failed Bush policies are apparent to the American people — a revitalized Taliban and al-Qaeda, a Vietnam-scale quagmire in Iraq that is daily costing us American lives and millions of dollars, and the alienation of the rest of the world.
ALEXANDER J. WINTER
Ithaca, N.Y.