Re “Athletes’ Brain Disease Is Found in Veterans” (news article, May 17): There is mounting evidence that traumatic brain injury can affect athletes and soldiers on more than just a physical level. The mental health effects of traumatic brain injury and chronic traumatic encephalopathy are just as debilitating: depression, suicidal ideation, an inability to focus and other issues manifest at every level of injury. While the article does not differentiate between psychological problems and brain injury, it is important to recognize that these are not mutually exclusive; in fact, they are closely linked. With continued awareness and partnerships like the National T.B.I. and Emotional Wellness Alliance being started by our association, we can finally hope to turn the corner on this issue and get all ... Continue reading →
To the Editor: Re “A Little Bit Indian” (column, May 20), about the Massachusetts Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren’s claim of Cherokee ancestry: The solution to the problem raised by Ross Douthat is actually very simple: affirmative action based on disadvantage, not ancestry. President Obama’s two daughters do not need, nor should they be eligible for, any advantage in admission to school or securing employment, beyond the advantages their lives have provided them. On the other hand, children of poor and/or uneducated parents, of any race, are at a disadvantage in their early education and do warrant special consideration when they are applying for admission to schools or employment. A high cheekbone should not be a reason for extra consideration, but a low income should be. ... Continue reading →
New York authorities are investigating the claims of a man who has told investigators that he had a role in the 1979 disappearance of Etan Patz, the 6-year-old boy who vanished in SoHo on his way to school and is believed to have been murdered, officials said on Thursday.“An individual now in custody has made statements to N.Y.P.D. detectives implicating himself in the disappearance and death of Etan Patz 33 years ago,” Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly said in a statement issued early Thursday. “We expect to provide further details later today.”The man, identified by one law enforcement official as Pedro Hernandez, was taken into custody late Wednesday in New Jersey and was taken to the office of the Manhattan District Attorney, Cyrus R. Vance, ... Continue reading →
Paul Fussell, the wide-ranging, stingingly opinionated literary scholar and cultural critic whose admiration for Samuel Johnson, Kingsley Amis and the Boy Scout Handbook was balanced against his withering scorn for the romanticization of war, the predominance of television and much of American society, died on Wednesday in Medford, Ore. He was 88. His stepson Cole Behringer said he died of natural causes in the long-term care facility where he had spent the last two years. Mr. Fussell’s widely acclaimed books encompassed seminal works on World War II, social commentary (“Uniforms: Why We Are What We Wear”), literary criticism (“The Anti-Egotist: Kingsley Amis, Man of Letters”) and memoir (“Doing Battle: The Making of a Skeptic”). But he may be best remembered for “The Great War and ... Continue reading →
To the Editor: Re “Rediscovering a Shortcut to an Hourglass Figure” (news article, May 16): “The less forgiving the material, the more flattering the effect.” This sentence says it all in your article about women once again squeezing their bodies so hard they find it difficult to breathe. The material is unforgiving because it is the product of a culture that invents and promotes an ideal, almost-impossible-to-achieve shape, and then punishes women for not maintaining it. As an overweight teenager, I wore pinching underclothes that left red marks on my skin and were brutally hot in summer. At 60, with swimming and long walks as pleasurable habits, I am saddened that the women in your article feel that they must painfully distort their bodies. Perhaps ... Continue reading →
To the Editor: Re “Lucas and Rich Neighbors Agree to Disagree: Part II” (news article, May 22): As former neighbors of the filmmaker George Lucas in San Anselmo, Calif., we applaud him for purposing affordable housing on his property in Lucas Valley. How dare his neighbors claim that lowlife crime and drug dealers will be their new neighbors. The people we should be honoring — teachers, firefighters, police officers, construction workers, shopkeepers, artists, all of the good people who make Marin County so great — can barely afford to live there now. Isn’t it wonderful that Mr. Lucas, with all of his money and power, cares about these folks? “May the force be with you,” George. BETSY GERACI TIM GERACI San Francisco, May 22, 2012 Continue reading →
