Letters: Mar. 31, 1997

(4 of 4)

It is small wonder the U.S. government has scant success in selling democratic principles to foreign governments such as China [NATION, March 10]. The whole world watches as the President transforms the White House's Lincoln Bedroom into a high-perk bed-and-breakfast free-enterprise zone to raise campaign funds. If any foreign-government honcho wanted to play down the merits of democracy, all he would need to do is tell his people to sit in front of the TV during a U.S. presidential campaign and watch the democratic process degenerate into disgusting mudslinging. The worst part is imagining where all the money for the campaign ads comes from. RICHARD STEWART SMITH Huntington Beach, California

American political workers go to Russia to assist Boris Yeltsin in his campaign. The cia sends agents to foreign countries to influence their governments. As long as the U.S. plays such a big role in determining the fate of people in other countries, those nations ought to have half a chance to say, through donations, which party controls the U.S. government and what it does to them. YISHAN WONG, age 18 St. Paul, Minnesota

Why on earth would anyone want to spend a night in a place like the Lincoln Bedroom, let alone pay for the privilege? The furnishings of the room look like stage props from the Addams Family set. Do guests in the morning wake up to Lurch entering with orange juice and eggs over easy? GEORGE SONNENSCHEIN La Jolla, California

MEXICO'S DRUG CHALLENGE

Narcotics may come through Mexico, but the destination point is in the U.S. [WORLD, March 10]. Authorities in Mexico may look the other way when, loaded with drugs, a plane takes off or a truck passes through, but what happens when it crosses the border into the U.S.? And when it is unloaded? Is it visible only south of the border? Every blind officer in Mexico must have a matching blind official in the U.S. EDGAR BECERRA Mexico City

The U.S. has failed to prevent the ever increasing flow of drugs across its borders. It is the largest narcomarket in the world, with drug use now seen frequently among elementary and high school students. Before passing judgment on Mexico, the U.S. should examine whether it could be certified as cooperating in the drug war. JUAN MARIO STETA Mexico City

Why should the U.S. government have been warned that Mexico was about to arrest its own top drug fighter for corruption? Who is the U.S. to be notified in advance about what Mexico does in its own internal affairs? America's drug problem is created and based in the U.S. As long as there is a buyer for any commodity, there will be a supplier. All the money the U.S. has used in this "war" might have been better spent on educating its citizens about drug use. FRANCISCO J. ORTIZ Richmond, British Columbia

Drug demand is so powerful in the U.S. that it will still have to certify Canada and all other nations as cooperating in the fight against drugs. And then American drug cartels will somehow find a way to get drugs. It is market law: someone will always fill the demand. JOSE L. RAMOS Mexico City