Boundless Resources
In "Making America Better" [March 26-April 2], it was refreshing to read about what America can learn from other countries, even a small kingdom like Bhutan ["Smoke-Free at the Top of the World"]. I was interested to see that handgun control in Japan appears to result in lower crimes like murder and rape ["More Stressed, but Still Safer"]. Nationally sponsored and paid for medical care seems to have resulted in greater longevity and lower infant mortality in some countries like the United Kingdom ["Free Health Coverage for All"]. Holland's approach to drug addiction-treatment versus incarceration for addicts-appears to have merit and costs less ["Abuse as a Disease, Not a Crime"]. We in the United States tend to brag about our democracy. I am proud of my country, but we can learn from others, and they'll like us better for a little humility.
ETHEL W. STOCK
Pennsburg, Pa.
Before I read "Making America Better," I had certain expectations. I anxiously awaited an article that profiled optimistic strides in the global south. As I carefully combed through the articles, I was pleased to see that the Dominican Republic, Colombia, Afghanistan, and Bhutan were recognized. However, I believe that the article was remiss in one respect-there was no mention of any country in Africa. In contrast with the consistently negative press about the antics of Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe, the soaring HIV rates in sub-Saharan Africa, ethnonationalist conflict in Sudan, and dwindling biodiversity, this article would have been the perfect opportunity to shed some light on the overlooked progress being made in the "Dark Continent." Do nations in Africa have nothing to teach, or is it simply that we are not willing to learn?
JAIRA HARRINGTON
Spelman College student
Atlanta
I was interested in your cover story, "Making America Better," about how things are done in other countries. I have a little anecdote that supports your observations about the French in "Where Talking Is a World-Class Sport." When I was a student in Paris, two uncles invited me for lunch in a Quartier Latin restaurant. At another table, there was a well-known Frenchman, Georges Bidault, who was prominent in the French Resistance and was many times French foreign minister and even prime minister after World War II. He had ordered a slice of melon and was talking and talking. We ordered lunch, had our conversations, and left after being in the restaurant more than an hour. When we left, Bidault was still talking, his slice of melon still on his plate untouched.
GEORGE NANICHE
Moraga, Calif.
"Below Sea Level? No Problem" lauds a high-tech Dutch flood control model without questioning whether that model is sustainable. After spending billions of dollars armoring the Netherlands against floods, even the Dutch are re-evaluating the long-term wisdom of continually building higher dikes, particularly in light of climate change. That the undisputed flood protection experts are setting back levees and restoring flood plains where possible makes a powerful statement about the value of natural flood protection. New Orleans and other communities should learn from the Dutch experience, but we should be sure to use the most recent lesson plans.
JOYCE WU
Program Associate,
Natural Flood Protection
American Rivers
Washington, D.C.
Ever since my first trip abroad where I discovered thermal-pane windows and nearly universal use of backpacks and mopeds by Europeans, I've questioned why the United States doesn't learn more from other countries. I've tried to share some brilliant ideas with my high school students, including soda pop sold in plastic bags instead of cans, which cuts down on trash in Guatemala.
VIRGINIA WILKINS
Denver
Why doesn't America adopt the progressive policies of enlightened Europe? We could have 35-hour workweeks, five-week vacations, lavish government benefits, and free healthcare! We could also have the declining economy, crushing taxes, massive unemployment, and low-quality medical services that go with it. Those pleasure-loving, aging Europeans face a crumbling welfare state and an angry Muslim minority set to be majority by midcentury. Goodbye, Eurotopia.
KERRY CLINKENBEARD
Wichita, Kan.
After visiting a number of European countries, it is both frustrating and disheartening to see the United States slipping behind. The thread that links many of your stories' examples is a description of policies that were once a primary American ideal: the greatest good for the greatest number of people. By contrast, the United States seems to be headed in the direction of providing first for the well-connected, for corporate behemoths, for career politicians, and only then for ordinary citizens. We have much to be thankful for, but we cannot arrogantly put on blinders while other nations move ahead of us. There are hard decisions to be made, and we can no longer put them off.
JEFF KARPINSKI
King of Prussia, Pa.
The "How They do it Better" series of articles was enlightening and enjoyable. Now all we need is an administration in Washington, D.C., that acknowledges the ideas and attributes of cultures other than their own. Perhaps then our lives will improve.
BOB HEATON
Muskegon, Mich.
The Amish Example
"Moving On" [March 26-April 2], about Amish forgiveness of last fall's tragedy "that transfixed the world," called to mind a sermon I heard near the anniversary of 9/11: "What if, instead of seeking vengeance, we had stood together in human pain, looking honestly at the shared sin and sadness we suffered? Won't work, many would have said, but on the other hand, will anything short of radical forgiveness ever end the violence and create peace?" Your article quoted an Amish expert as saying "the Amish would argue that forgiveness is the central teaching of Jesus. They will take you to the Lord's Prayer-if you don't forgive, you won't be forgiven." Religious leaders appealed to President Bush for a more Christian response to 9/11 and attempted to dissuade him from the invasion of Iraq. Our actions have displaced millions, killed innocents, and recruited thousands of Muslims to the terrorists' cause. It is time to recognize that the Israeli/Palestinian issue is a root cause and must be addressed. I yearn for "one nation, under God" to be restored.
ANN JACOBI
Belton, Texas
After reading "Moving On," I couldn't help but wonder what our country would be like if after 9/11 we and our leaders had followed a similar course of forgiveness. I applaud the Amish people of Nickel Mines, Pa., and truly hope that these fellow Americans can teach the rest of us by their fine example.
JIM MYRON
Bethel Park, Pa.
Nuclear Power Play
After reading "Energy to Burn" [March 26-April 2], I was captured by Mortimer B. Zuckerman's lament over America's future because of our addiction to fossil fuels. But Zuckerman's pessimism is a bit overblown. There is no real reason why we cannot develop safe nuclear energy. Modern reactor designs are inherently safe, and nuclear wastes can be processed and stored in a safe manner, if we disregard the doomsday environmental groups decrying the efficacy of nuclear power. Safe fission reactors can be constructed using existing technologies while sustained, well-funded research would provide a new generation of fusion reactors that could come online by the latter half of this century. Computer modeling has dramatically increased the odds of producing a viable fusion reactor in the next decade. What could we expect if $100 billion to $200 billion were spent on this technology instead of wasted on a fruitless military campaign? But, alas, Zuckerman is probably correct. There is no national or political will to embark upon such a program. Millions of Americans are unwilling to give up their thirsty SUVs or even explore ways to make their homes more energy efficient.
DARRIN B. LEWER
Cypress, Texas
Zuckerman is right. We have an energy crisis, and our political system does not address it properly. Zuckerman, however, is wrong about nuclear power. The new generation of reactors on fast neutrons will produce more energy from uranium. The radioactive waste will be much smaller in volume and will not need to be sequestered for thousands of years because it will decay to safe levels in a few hundred years. Other benefits of a nuclear power plant include: It does not emit greenhouse and acid rain gases, and it does not create tons of toxic slag as coal-burning plants do. An abundance of electricity will allow production of hydrogen for fuel cells to power all sorts of vehicles, thus freeing us from being hostages to oil-exporting countries. Energy-independent America will be able to conduct foreign policy according to our interests.
YURI TUVIM
Gloucester, Mass.
Zuckerman's editorial about energy was informative, timely, and a bit frightening since it followed the cover feature about other countries and "How They Do It Better" than the United States. Our elected representatives are indeed responsible for our current problems, as you pointed out: "Our leaders would rather avoid the tough issues of fuel efficiency and higher taxes." They cannot, or will not, act to solve problems.
R. M. MILLS
Jacksonville, Fla.
This story appears in the April 23, 2007 print edition of U.S. News & World Report.