Time November 2/November 9, 2020WARNING SIGNS
Re “When Will We GeT a
Vaccine?” [Sept. 21–28]:
I remember sitting in my
third-year microbiology lec-
ture toward the end of last
year, listening to the profes-
sor warn us that the next
pandemic will come and
the world will not be ready.
There was a sense of urgency
that prompted me to con-
sider why the world didn’t
seem worried about this. So
when COVID-19 began its
journey across the world,
it wasn’t a shock to me. I
couldn’t help but feel frus-
trated. Why didn’t we listen
to those so desperately trying
to prevent this disaster?
Kimberley Bourke,
malveRn, ausTRalia
PLACING BLAME
Re “The ameRican niGhT-
mare” [Sept. 21–28]: It is no
longer news that the current
U.S. President has been mis-
leading the nation all along
in the face of the COVID-
pandemic. What amazes me
is that he could still win re-
election despite all this.
Tetsuro Umeji,
KudamaTsu ciTy, Japan
This aRTicle blames The
Trump Administration
for every failure resulting
from the pandemic without
once mentioning that some
states like New York are run
by Democrats. I am not an
American, but still it sickens
me to see how the big Ameri-
can media shamelessly vilify
a sitting President without
any respect for the office.
Philip Loong,
boRonia, ausTRaliaGET REAL
Re “doWn The RabbiT
Hole” [Sept. 21–28]: Call-
ing them conspiracy “theo-
ries” might be too much of
an honor. It might sound as
if it has something to do with
science or is a kind of fact-
based thinking. So why not
call them conspiracy myths
from now on? Apart from
that, it’s really incomprehen-
sible to imagine people like
the woman in your article
who “spends most of her free
time researching child sex
trafficking” when they could
instead actually help by vol-
unteering at a child-abuse/
domestic violence helpline or
support a similar cause.
Dayson Ickbert,
beRlinTHE PATH TOWARD CHANGE
Re “QuicK TalK” [sepT. 21–
28]: Jane Fonda illustrates
the main problem with much
of the climate movement
through her statement that
“civil disobedience has to
become the new norm.” This
suggests that climate change
was the result of unjust leg-
islation and could easily be
fixed by the right policy. Cli-
mate change is the result of a
multitude of factors, and thecore of how we can address it
is through innovation. Gov-
ernments can either engen-
der or impede such innova-
tion through legislation, and
to achieve this, drawing at-
tention to the issue through
protest can be vital. No pol-
icy, and no act of civil disobe-
dience, however, will lead to
success in fighting climate
change if it does not enable
scientists and developers to
come up with sustainable al-
ternatives to replace carbon-
emitting technologies and
power sources in use today.
Larissa Saar,
bonn, GeRmanyINVESTING IN THAILAND
Re “Thailand’s inconve-
nient Truth. Why This Bil-
lionaire Is Risking It All to
Back Reform of the Monar-
chy” [Sept. 24]: This online
article is one-sided and por-
trays misconceptions about
Thailand, which has con-stantly undergone reform
to achieve a more prosper-
ous, just and equitable soci-
ety. Granted, economic and
social inequality still exists
in the country. But succes-
sive Thai governments have
worked hard to rectify this
problem, investing in educa-
tion, development and qual-
ity of life among others. Al-
though the Royal Family is
above politics, it plays an
important role in supporting
these efforts with volunteer
initiatives, relief projects and
more, earning the respect
and gratitude of the Thai
people.
Thani Thongphakdi,
Ambassador of Thailand
to the U.S.,
WashinGTonConversation
SETTING THE RECORD
STRAIGHT ▶ In the Aug. 17/
Aug. 24 story about the future of
American policing, we misstated
when Joseph Wysocki became police
chief in Camden, N.J. It was in 2019.Back Issues Contact us at [email protected] or call 1-800-843-8463.
Reprints and Permissions Information is available at time.com/reprints. To
request custom reprints, visit timereprints.com. Advertising For advertising rates
and our editorial calendar, visit timemediakit.com. Syndication For international
licensing and syndication requests, contact us at [email protected].▽
folloW us:
facebook.com/time
@time (Twitter and Instagram)▽
send an email:
[email protected]
Please do not send attachmentsTALK TO US
Letters should include the writer’s full name, address and home telephone and may be edited for purposes of clarity and space6