As the World Reels

When my job was eliminated because of the lagging economy, I was given my supervisor's verbal expression of condolence, a letter confirming the exact dates of my employment, the chance to buy health insurance at my own expense and the assurance that I would be entitled to the fully allowable unemployment benefits due me. I hope this is the same generous package that will be offered to all those who lose jobs in the financial-services sector, but especially to CEOs and those in management positions who not only share responsibility for the current debacle but could have afforded to save for leaner times. Certainly the taxes paid by the thousands like me should not contribute in any way to allowing those people to continue living in the kind of comfort I could not afford even before I lost my job.

Susan Bennett Dupuis
Pleasant Hill, California

Smoking Out Tobacco Use
Many thanks to New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg for his article about the devastating damage caused by tobacco use ("The Way to Save Millions of Lives Is to Prevent Smoking," GIVING GLOBALLY, Sept. 29). It makes me feel ashamed to live in a wealthy country with well-educated citizens, where no leading politician dares to state the obvious and act decisively. Yes, smoking is one of the greatest health hazards. Nevertheless, even the slightest attempt to ban smoking in some places under certain circumstances and with many exceptions causes an outcry, as if basic human rights were under assault. The influence of the powerful tobacco industry and a strong pro-smoking bias in the media manage to stymie every rational effort to improve this public-health situation. My only criticism of Bloomberg: He should have mentioned the death toll among nonsmokers, and how to protect nonsmokers from secondary smoke. This would actually be a perfect piece to appear in every German newspaper—and to impact the minds of German politicians.

Werner Breitenstein
Stutensee, Germany

A One- or Two- State Solution?
Sari Nusseibeh, President Of Al-Quds University, writes about the one-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict ("The One-State Solution," Sept. 29). This of course means the dismantlement of the nation-state of the Jewish people. That is unacceptable to the overwhelming majority of Israelis, who refuse to commit national suicide. The only solution to the 100 year-old conflict remains the two-state solution, with the border following closely the Green Line, with minor modifications and land swaps. And the majority of Israelis today support that solution.

Jacob Amir
Jerusalem, Israel