MAIL CALL: REVISITING THE SCANDAL THAT ROCKED THE

Responding to our June 13 cover story on Deep Throat, a.k.a. W. Mark Felt, readers offered mixed views on the man who helped bring down President Richard Nixon 30 years ago. Many saw Felt as heroic. "Somewhere between the Jefferson and Lincoln memorials, a statue of Mark Felt needs to be erected," said one. Some viewed him as a man who simply did the right thing. "Upon entering office, every federal employee takes an oath to uphold the Constitution," said a retired federal employee. "Mark Felt was only doing his duty and honoring his commitment to our Constitution." But others were less supportive. One said, "Felt's actions were self-serving, not heroic." Another contended, "Felt is not a national hero. He is a vindictive man who saw his chance for revenge and took it." One reader remarked hopefully, "We wouldn't have to worry about such scandals if all our leaders worked unselfishly together for the good of all people."

Deep Throat Revealed

After having had a full week's fire-hose treatment of commentary about the identity, character and motives of W. Mark Felt, I found it refreshing to read Evan Thomas's dispassionate yet incisive critique of the Watergate affair itself ("A Long Shadow," June 13). Thomas does not glorify or vilify Mark Felt. Neither does he label Felt a patriot or a traitor or worse. Rather, he discusses the genesis of Watergate, the continuing impact on successive administrations and the reminiscent question marks that some suggest hang over the Bush administration. Whether one calls Felt a hero or a "snake," the bottom line is that he was the cog in the wheel that brought the corrupt Nixon administration to an eventual screeching halt, and America should be grateful for that.
Dorian de Wind
Austin, Texas

So let's see if I get this. Mark Felt is considered a hero for leaking sensitive, classified information he gleaned from FBI investigations while he was the No. 2 man in the FBI and creating the fall of Richard Nixon. Linda Tripp is vilified for almost creating the fall of Bill Clinton. Felt did what he did for all the wrong reasons--mostly personal, to get back at Nixon for passing him over as director of the FBI. Now his family publicly states its desire to make money off his actions. Felt was not a good guy. If I had done what he did in my 33-year FBI career, he would have crucified me and pushed for my indictment. Felt hurt a lot of good agents and ruined their careers for minor infractions, yet he thought he was above the rules. He is no hero to me.
Charles B. Warner
Solebury, Pa.

Of course feelings will be mixed about Mark Felt's role in Watergate. But whistle-blowers are the heroes of our time. Felt did the nation a great service. It would seem that similar actions are desperately needed in today's era of closed ranks and hidden agendas. As we found out the hard way, loyalty to corruption is perversion.
Larry Hourany
McKinleyville, Calif.

After receiving my June 13 issue of NEWSWEEK, I prepared myself to read articles proclaiming Mark Felt one of America's greatest heroes. What I found was a very neutral and informative piece showing both sides of the issue. My feeling is that what Felt did was out of spite and/or revenge for having been passed over to head the FBI. The way he went about bringing down a presidency was the cowardly act of a traitor who did not want any fingers pointed in his direction for fear his own sleazy wrong- doings would be discovered. I do not see anything heroic about it. Thank you for shining light on both sides of this story.
Keith Kraps
Evansville, Ind.

Evan Thomas's article is a good reminder of how arrogance, threats and abuse of power can cause disaster, even in the most powerful office in the land. This is an important history lesson for the younger generations, who missed one of the biggest political-corruption scandals of the 20th century. Revisionists like Pat Buchanan and several convicted Nixon cronies would have people believe that Mark Felt, not Richard Nixon, was the criminal. They have geared up a propaganda machine that would have been the envy of the Kremlin during the cold war. More than three decades ago, many people learned a lesson from Watergate and the failed cover-up. Others, apparently, are still covering up.
Mitchell J. Fine
El Dorado Hills, Calif.

Jonathan Alter's June 13 column is the most thought-provoking and truest commentary I have read ("If Watergate Happened Now"). In this political atmosphere you can't disagree with anything against any Republican, even one from 30 years ago, without getting into a heated conversation. It scares me to listen to people today who admit they don't know any details about Watergate bashing Mark Felt and sticking up for Richard Nixon. He must be feeling vindicated somewhere!
Lisa Mazzarella
Austin, Texas

Saying No to Standardized Tests

Thank you, Anna Quindlen, for writing about the standardized-testing spree abounding in the United States ("Testing: One, Two, Three," June 13). As an elementary-school teacher in Utah, I've just survived our year-end testing. It would be OK if this test's score meant anything beyond a penalty for our school, but it doesn't. I assess my students continually, and after I teach them a concept I test to check their mastery. However, the test we took in May had no bearing on any specific lessons in my class. The only benefit this score will have is on a bureaucrat's spreadsheet. This test is simply a number--and it is leaching the joy out of learning and teaching. Quindlen is right; parents should protest this testing. But teachers, as well as principals and administrators, should also speak up. Testing is not a cure for what ails our schools. Educators need to be vocal about what No Child Left Behind really is.
Janet Simpson
Salt Lake City, Utah

Hooray for Anna Quindlen's perceptive assessment regarding students' being inundated with multiple-choice standardized exams. The situation is so out of control that one wonders if there will be any creativity and originality left in the education of our nation's children. Intellectual thought is a dying commodity. Thanks to No Child Left Behind, huge sums of money are going into additional multiple-choice testing of schools instead of into books, supplies, new teachers and tutors for failing students. This year's exam at the school where I teach was a 14-hour multiple-choice marathon--used only to rate our school. The question the media need to address is how wealthy the testing corporations are becoming at the expense of our children's intellectual thought, imagination and creativity. As the truckloads of exams arrive at our nation's schools, one wonders who the real beneficiaries are.
Larry Zeiger
San Diego, Calif.

I take strong exception to Anna Quindlen's diatribe against the standardized-testing movement. Equating the value of testing with weighing overweight people is simplistic at best, misguided at worst. Testing, when used properly (as we do in my school system), gives teachers the data they need to craft lessons in order to en-sure achievement for all students. No Child Left Behind has many faults, but the testing component is not a "barrage of mind-less and endless assessment," as Quindlen would have us believe. Constantly weighing an obese person is not a fruitless exercise if a patient's changes in weight are analyzed and a diet is crafted based on the results. Analyzing standardized tests allows us to determine the educational "diet" necessary for every individual student to become successful. This is the essence of No Child Left Behind.
David M. Lyons, Ed.D.
Director of Standards-Based Education Revere Public Schools
Revere, Mass.

Needed: Immigration Reform

I was happy to see a major publication tackle the issue of immigration, as Robert J. Samuelson did ("The Hard Truth of Immigration," June 13). As a longtime resident of California, I have seen first- hand the devastating effects uncontrolled immigration has had on our schools, our health care and our prison system. It is time for our government to do its job and protect our borders. However, I must disagree with Samuelson's idea of giving amnesty to illegal aliens, or allowing any type of guest-worker program. Politicians incorrectly believe they need to be lax on immigration issues, as they don't want to offend the growing Hispanic voting bloc. They need to realize that recent legal Hispanic immigrants are most adversely affected by uncontrolled illegal immigration.
David R. Dorazio
Redwood City, Calif.

The effect of unprecedented mass immigration will become increasingly manifest as overburdened hospitals are forced to close and as education continues to suffer in overcrowded schools struggling with language barriers. Samuelson says that "we could provide legal status to illegal immigrants already here." This, however, would make a mockery of all foreigners waiting their legal turn to gain citizenship. The seven amnesties since 1986 have only induced more illegal activity. It's time for immigration levels to be determined by the nation rather than by foot traffic on the border. Let's restore traditional levels of immigration.
John F. Rohe
Petoskey, Mich.

Good Girl, Bad Girl

There is a tendency in this nation to revile anything that puts power into the hands of women, whether it be birth control, abortion or something as harmless as Jennifer Garner's saving the world from a giant red blob in "Alias" ("Bad Girls Go Wild," June 13). It is not the media or women's liberation that is to blame for this upsurge, but the persistent desire to lump girls into blanket "good" and "bad" categories. We are individuals with individual personalities and desires, yet never has the Madonna/whore syndrome been so rampant. Rather than wasting energy stripping back Title IX rights, forcing schools to teach abstinence and banning the HPV vaccine (which could potentially save millions of lives), we should focus on teaching girls how to deal with their anger in socially constructive ways, such as through competitive sports or academics. Rage comes out in one way or another, and the more it is suppressed, the more horrific the consequences. Any grown woman who has survived the treacheries of high school will tell you there is nothing more terrifying than an angry teenage girl.
Karin Slaughter
Atlanta, Ga.

Correction

In "Some Like It Hot" (Tip Sheet, June 13), we said that the Barn Theatre is located in Augusta, Maine. It is in Augusta, Mich. NEWSWEEK regrets the error.