Letters

—Marc S. Tucker
Manhattan Beach

Somebody should inform Jonathan Vankin that Stan Lee didn’t create Spider-Man,
or any other comic-book character for that matter. It’s common knowledge in
the comics industry that Stan Lee did nothing more than rewrite dialogue after
Jack Kirby — the artist and writer of such comics as Fantastic Four,
X-Men and Captain America — turned in his completed artwork to
the Marvel offices. If asked, Stan Lee himself will admit to this. The problem
is, nobody ever bothers to ask.

—Robert Guffey
Torrance

DISPROPORTIONAL

“At the same time, cleanup crews had completely transformed
Ground Zero into a vast emptiness that more resembled a new construction site
than the scene of the nation’s worst human disaster since slavery” [“Less
Than Ground Zero,” January 4–10]. I think Steven Mikulan needs a reality
check. By what standard was the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center “the
nation’s worst human disaster since slavery”? Has he forgotten about World War
II? Vietnam?

—“Blind Morton” Henkin
Los Angeles

AHISTORICAL

Re: Ali Ahmed Rind’s
“Letter From Pakistan: The Last Stand” [January 11–17]. I can understand
that Mr. Rind’s views would be biased. He is a Pakistani. But it is his distortion
of history that galls me. His “brief history” in paragraph five is a bit too
brief, I must say. He says, “Kashmir was divided between Pakistan and India,
and the two countries have fought two full-scale wars . . .” The fact of the
matter is, Kashmir was not divided between India and Pakistan; it agreed to
join India. The maharajah of Kashmir, like 500-plus sundry rulers who formed
British India, had a choice of joining either India or the newly created state
of Pakistan. The maharajah chose India after Pakistan invaded his state to force
his hand. This is not in dispute; there have been countless books written on
the subject.

So you see, Pakistan was the aggressor in 1947, and after Kashmir joined India,
India had to send its troops to defend the newest member of its family. This
is why the two countries fought a war in 1947-48 (and a couple more after that).
It is one thing to express biased views, but it is entirely another to distort
history. I feel that you owe it to your readers to present the facts.

—Ajay Shekhawat
Buffalo, New York

POWERS VS. THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

Re: “Rank and
Yank at Enron” [January 11–17]. Great column by John Powers on the entanglements
of Enron and the Bushies. Too bad the mainstream media can’t quite grasp the
story.

—George Baker
Boise, Idaho

Re: John Powers’ story concerning Enron and The Wall Street Journal’s
coverage thereof. Powers is way off base. He should be able to comprehend the
difference between the (rabidly right-wing) editorial page and the news pages.
The Journal broke the Enron story, and has covered it with great intensity
and insight. Powers owes them a correction, and an apology.

—Alan Paul
Maplewood, New Jersey

I have had many people slam my Enron piece, but so far John Powers is the
only person who seems to have read it.

—Susan Lee
The Wall Street Journal editorial page
New York City

POWERS ª THE NEW YORK TIMES

Re: John Powers’ kudos for The New York Times’
Paul Krugman [“The
Crash of Civilizations,” December 28–January 3]. Bravo! Krugman is what
I call “tough love.”

—Rex January
Long Beach

BETTER LAY OFF THE

FOSTER’S, BOYS

Just to compliment you on your informative L.A. Weekly
Web site. You keep us Sydney, Australia, folks up to date with all the latest
news, views and opinions. We are 100 percent supportive of Mr. Bush and his
presidential team! Mr. Bush, Mr. Powell, Ms. Rice, Mr. Rumsfeld, Mr. Cheney
. . . a united team leading a united USA in the united allied war against the
rising tide of fanatical terrorism!

—Cozzie and the Boys
University of Sydney
Australia

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