(5 of 5)
In "Nissan Calls For A Tow" [BUSINESS, March 1], your readers were given a blurred snapshot of our company. Some of the positive steps we've taken were overlooked. Over the past year, we have restructured the way we do business in North America, and we are making substantial progress. We agree with your assessment that Nissan's new Xterra suv is "hot," but it is hardly "alone." By March 2000, Nissan will have redesigned virtually all its vehicles, including the flagship Maxima. We have a solid lineup of cars and trucks, a strong group of dealers and a parent company committed to the U.S. market. Nissan has been here for 40 years, and we're only planning to get better and stronger. MICHAEL J. SEERGY VICE PRESIDENT AND GENERAL MANAGER Nissan North America Carson, Calif.
I bought a Nissan 200SX in 1979 and never learned to live with its rear end, which fishtailed all over the highway in slick and rainy weather. And the astronomical cost of replacement parts finally finished whatever predilection I had for Japanese cars. WILLIAM ORR Picayune, Miss.
READY TO RUN?
Hillary Clinton would make a superb Senator [NATION, March 1] should the electorate of Arkansas choose to bestow the honor upon her. Representing New York, however, would be contortionism in true Clintonesque style. She has not shoveled New York snow or paid New York taxes. She has not earned the right to represent the people of New York. STEPHEN P. SCHAEFER Rochester, N.Y.
BRINGING BACK HO CHI MINH
California shopkeeper Truong Van Tran's display of a poster of Viet Cong leader Ho Chi Minh may be insensitive [AMERICAN SCENE, March 8], but he is perfectly within his rights to do so. Those Asian Americans who harassed and attacked Tran should remember just how generous their American neighbors must have been in accepting and tolerating them and the customs they brought from their Asian homeland. An individual's freedom of peaceful expression, even when used to promote unpopular thoughts, must be protected. FRANK S.C. CHANG Los Angeles
On behalf of my fellow veterans who can no longer speak, I ask those who back Tran's freedom of expression not to confuse free speech with acts of treason and inciting a riot. The communists are very adept at creating unrest and then using our laws to further their cause. JERRY MAZENKO Garden Grove, Calif.
MOUSEKETEER WHO MADE GOOD
At first I laughed after reading your item about my husband Bobby Burgess, which labeled him a "Bad Mouseketeer" because he spent 21 years dancing on TV's Lawrence Welk Show [PEOPLE, March 8]. I think you actually meant to include him on your "Good Mouseketeer" list. Bobby joined the Lawrence Welk Show in 1961 and has always been proud of it. The show became a top syndication pioneer in 1982, and reruns can still be seen. Bobby's association with the show is definitely a "good" thing. No, it's more: it's wunnerful! KRISTIE BURGESS, MOUSEKEWIFE Los Angeles