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Richard Knabel misrepresented my presidency of Riverkeeper, the environmental organization that I founded, in saying I "was informed that the board would remove [me] from office" for reasons unrelated to Riverkeeper's hiring William Wegner as a consulting scientist [LETTERS, July 31]. Such an unwarranted aspersion could lead readers to believe I was guilty of some malfeasance. The undisputed facts are that I fired Wegner, on the grounds that he was a convicted environmental smuggler, on Nov. 22, a week after I discovered that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had hired him. Would a bank hire Willie Sutton or a school a pedophile? I then repeatedly promised that if Kennedy or his supporters ever rehired Wegner, I would resign. When they did so in June, I kept my promise and I kept the faith. ROBERT H. BOYLE Cold Spring, N.Y.
Saints Preserve Us!
In its quest to beatify a conservative Pope, the Roman Catholic Church keeps stubbing its toe on potential "saints" who lived under a dark cloud of racism--first Pius XII and now badly flawed Pius IX [RELIGION, Sept. 4]. Doesn't it seem ridiculous that grown men are digging up dead bodies and making new godlings? At the start of the 21st century, one might hope the church would come to grips with important issues, perhaps even re-examine its opposition to birth control, abortion and divorce. Those three matters alone would alleviate a great deal of suffering. If Pius IX is indeed a candidate for canonization, then Pope John Paul II's recent apology for the church's missteps over the centuries is at best lame and at worst only hollow words. RICHARD L. CRAWFORD Vineyard Haven, Mass.
I am happy to know that Pope Pius IX stood up against modernity. Read today's newspaper and tell me we are better off shedding the faith of the past for the license of the present. You can't. The media find it preferable to take potshots at a dead Pope. VINCE PHELAN Norwalk, Conn.
The church has enough saints and people of merit to last till the next millennium. Who will it canonize next? Benito Mussolini? LIA CHASEN East Norwich, N.Y.
The canonization of Pope Pius IX goes against the feelings of most people. We associate sanctity with heroines like Mother Teresa of Calcutta, not aristocrats at the top of the Catholic hierarchy who lived in golden palaces as kings. GIORGIO DI PRIMIO Bologna, Italy
The Big Arctic Meltdown
Isn't it time that all humanity woke up to the realities of global warming--something that scientists have recognized and warned about for years [ENVIRONMENT, Sept. 4]? After significant climatic change, the earth may be not as generous, richly diverse or hospitable as it has been in centuries past. What right do we have to threaten the existence of other species? Who are we to selfishly deprive future generations of the gifts of the earth? JANICE H. IANNELLI DI TOSTO Lincoln Park, N.J.
The current condition of patches of open water near the North Pole is not a new one caused by man-made influences or by this generation. Historical evidence documents the presence of crops in Greenland for a few centuries after it was settled by the Vikings, a millennium ago. These atmospheric climate changes occur naturally. The sky isn't falling, and we aren't permanently melting the polar ice. LOREN D. HAMLIN Tucson, Ariz.