Letters

(2 of 3)

Criminal Weaponry

I thought the Washington Beltway sniper case would increase public support for gun control [Nation, Nov. 4]. On the contrary, I see people grabbing weapons for dear life. It is ironic that while Americans keep their guns, the U.S. is demanding that other countries destroy their arms. Maybe we still see ourselves as being like the cowboys in the movies who kill the bad guys. The problem is that sooner or later we may become the bad guy in somebody else's sick mind. Let's learn from other countries that are safer because within their borders anger and frustration cannot find an outlet with a bullet.
SILVINA ERWIN
Vienna, W.Va.

The real issue is not gun control but how the courts handle crooks who use guns. There should be a mandatory sentence for anyone found guilty of using a gun while committing a crime. We should send these people to jail and not attack law-abiding gun owners.
Alton Williams
Hendersonville, N.C.

As American as Apple Pie

Kudos to Lev Grossman for his intelligent perspective on the new video game Vice City, the sequel to Grand Theft Auto III [Video Games, Nov. 4]. The mainstream media's usual inability to grasp even the most basic concepts of video games has become a joke among gamers on the Web. As we laugh, we are also worried that if our media critics can't be bothered to play the games they write about, the American public will go on blaming entertainment (notably games) for society's ills without ever knowing what games and gamers are really like. Every single day I and millions of others play video games that are drowning in blood, and the thought of real-world violence never enters our head.
MICK CLARK
Tampa, Fla.

What was Grossman thinking? Vice City glorifies violence nothing more, nothing less. To call it art and claim it deals with philosophical issues of right and wrong is to give it far more respect than it deserves. My kids are 10 and 12. They would love to have Vice City, but they're not getting it. That is what's called responsible parenting.
BRYAN ASHENBAUM
Phoenix, Ariz.

The Moscow Theater Siege

Despite what many people think, the Chechen rebels' siege of the Moscow theater did not completely fail [World, Nov. 4]. Although the Chechens' demands were not met and most of the rebels were killed, their real goal was not to stop the war in Chechnya. Their main concern was to end the media's silence about the conflict there. The Moscow siege has jogged the memories of those who thought that the hostilities in Chechnya were over. The objective of making people around the world aware of the war has been fulfilled.
DAVID LISSMYR
Fourqueux, France

Russian President Vladimir Putin has linked the acts of the rebels from Chechnya, a mostly Muslim republic, to the kind of radical Islamic terror that led to the Sept. 11 attacks. TIME said Chechens were doing this kind of thing long before al-Qaeda did. I strongly disagree. The fact that these Muslim hostage takers are suicide bombers indicates a link between the Chechens and the Islamic radicals who are terrorizing the world and giving peace-loving Muslims a bad name. All terrorists need to be treated the same. If you attack civilians for political reasons, you should be treated as a terrorist. The worthiness of the cause should be irrelevant. Attacking civilian targets is cowardice.
SHERYL RIELING
Aylett, Va.

Hostilities in Chechnya have raised questions about ways to achieve security and peace in today's world. Russia considers its attacks on Chechen rebels anti-terror measures. Israel calls its actions against Palestinians part of the war on terror. Similar responses to conflicts around the globe are labeled by states as anti-terror. Meanwhile the death and destruction continue. The Indonesian government considered the East Timorese to be terrorists. But peace came when the people's wishes for independence and autonomy were fulfilled. Security cannot be attained by trampling on others' right to self-rule.
MOHD HABEEB HARIS
Hyderabad, India

In the wake of the hostage taking by Chechen rebels, one wonders how vulnerable our auditoriums are in America. What would the U.S. government's response be to terrorists taking hostages in Carnegie Hall or at the Metropolitan Opera House, with 3,000-plus people in the audience?
GIB MONOKOSKI
Aurora, Ill.