Pondering the Origins of Big Thoughts

'Lincoln vs. Darwin: Who Matters More?' Goaded by our cover question, readers made their case. One said, "Lincoln created history; Darwin merely observed it." Another wrote, "Darwin's theory of evolution had a global impact on the biological sciences and theology." And one posited, "Both are equally important. Lincoln and Darwin taught what it means to be human—free, equal and connected to the rest of creation. Because of Darwin, we know that 'race' has no basis in biology. Because of Lincoln, we now have an African-American man poised to become president."

How Lincoln and Darwin Shaped Us
After twice reading "The Stories We Tell Ourselves" and "Who Was More Important: Lincoln or Darwin?" (July 14) I'm ready to peruse them a third time. I know for certain my summer NEWSWEEK issues are coming with me to school in the fall. As a teacher of American literature, I value highly the role history plays in an era's literature. Beyond that, I see the lessons today's leaders and their followers can learn from looking back at how the pacesetters of yesterday dealt with their world and its challenges.
Sheila Boerner
North Platte, Neb.

Malcolm Jones's analysis of the impact of Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin on the present day was brilliant, but the true answer to the question he posed in the article's title may well come on Nov. 4. Lincoln's embrace of egalitarianism and Darwin's "survival of the fittest" are alive and well in, respectively, the Democratic and Republican ideologies of today. The winner of the presidential election will tell us which of these two great historical figures is more important to Americans now.
Matthew J. Bundick
Stanford, Calif.

Thank you for the superb Lincoln and Darwin essay. In the "Defining Moments" sidebar it was not Darwin, but Thomas Henry Huxley, who defended Darwin's ideas at the 1860 Oxford debate. From an American perspective one can argue that Lincoln was more important, but no one influenced Western thought more than Darwin. "The Origin of Species" created a paradigm shift. This dramatic change in the world's view from supernaturalism to methodological naturalism has allowed staggering scientific advances in the past 150 years that transcend science and affect the human psyche.
Tim M. Berra, Professor Emeritus
Dept. of Evolution, Ecology & Organismal Biology
The Ohio State University
Mansfield, Ohio

Since childhood, I have admired the complex and troubled figure of Abraham Lincoln, whose courage in defense of the Union and in opposition to slavery (if not racism) contributed greatly to ending two and a half centuries of a monstrous injustice. But in the rest of the world, Lincoln is virtually unknown and his influence largely unfelt, whereas—directly or indirectly—Charles Darwin's "The Origin of Species" and "The Descent of Man" have influenced science, medicine, social policy and religion throughout most societies. Who matters more? That depends upon which of the world's 194 countries you reside in.
Andrew Horn
Cambridge, Mass.

Global Warming & Extreme Weather
As an Alaskan on the front line of climate change, I make a habit of reading Sharon Begley's articles on global warming. I am writing to plant an "idea seed" that directly relates to "Global Warming Is a Cause of This Year's Extreme Weather" (July 14). While many of the recent extreme weather events are associated with climate change, weather news reports hardly mention this connection. Your article was a welcome exception. To reverse the dangerous climate trend we are in, people surely need to change the ways they consume energy. The easiest way to raise individual consciousness is to tie climate change to weather reports—something everyone talks about and watches. As such, I was wondering if it was possible for weather experts to develop a climate-change association index—say, on a scale of 1 to 5 for different types of extreme weather events, such as floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, etc.—that weather reporters could quickly reference. When we have 100-year floods every 10 years or so, it's more than just local weather patterns. Alas, most reporters miss the climate-change connection, and as a result so do most Americans. I certainly hope this can be developed given that Alaska is warming up at two to three times the rate of the Lower 48. This small step could have a very significant impact on how we as a nation face up to the challenge of climate change.
Kate Troll, Executive Director
Alaska Conservation Alliance
Anchorage, Alaska

Take Me Home, Mountain Roads
"The Voters of Appalachia …" (July 14) sure awakened memories for me. I was among the first generation of our mountain people to attend high school, and we had to be sent down out of the mountains to board in the city. Before that I had never seen a policeman, heard a siren or lived with the benefits of electric power. While in high school I was called names like hick, and hillbilly, and took some pretty mean abuse at the hands of the "civilized." In fact the longer I remain in "civilization," the prouder I become of my heritage, and the less I find of real value among the so-called civilized. While I wouldn't want to go back to, say, not having refrigerators and toilet paper, in a sweet minute I'd go back to the way mountain people treated each other. We had no lawmen, and no formal laws, but people were neighborly, and helped one another. Thanks for helping to educate people about the virtues of real country life.
Jon Garate
St. Helena, Calif.

As a daughter of Appalachia, I appreciate Steve Tuttle's respectful candor about our home. These are a people used up and left behind by this society, a people upon whose backs the industrial age and modernity were fueled. They distrust outsiders because outsiders routinely disrespect them and destroy their homeland. I have tried, since leaving Appalachia, to educate the outside world about my people. My words are rarely taken seriously, just as my people are rarely taken seriously. Tuttle offers well-put advice that Barack Obama, John McCain and the rest of this country would do well do heed. And, though I don't expect they will, I'll continue to nurture the hope that this country can, one day, be as great as the ideals upon which it was founded.
Shannon S. Moon
Redwood City, Calif.