Mail Call: Has Dr. Phil Gone To Your Head?

I read with pleasure your enlightening story on Dr. Phil. He is an in-your-face, no-nonsense therapist who makes you take responsibility for your own situations or choices. However, I take exception to the characterization of Marianne Williamson as a guru who has turned self-help into a "crutch." Williamson is any---thing but that. She is a proponent of self-examination and responsibility. She just approaches it from a spiritual point of view, rather than a practical one.
Joan A. Bang
Wayne, PA.

It's a good thing Dr. Phil will be on TV for five days a week. He might be able to help some of the 39 million Americans who have no health insurance.
Bill Huey
Atlanta, GA.

The Divisive Issue of Iraq

It angers me that war is taken so lightly among a small group of politically opportunistic bullies ("Hawks, Doves and Dubya," Sept. 2). My father survived the beaches of Normandy in a "good war," yet was so affected by the human tragedy that he never spoke of it again in the remaining 50 years of his life. My own generation was ravaged by Vietnam. War should not be used for political gain--not when young lives (on both sides) are at stake. It should be used only when other means have failed and with allied support. Bombing a nation of more than 16 million people may not be best way to remove one man, no matter how "evil" he may be. These words come not from a liberal Democrat, but from one of those moderate Republicans who believe in fiscal and compassionate conservatism; President Bush should not forget that we are also those soccer moms who helped get Bill Clinton elected.
Robin Albing
Readington, N.J.

Indecisiveness in the Bush administration on Iraq could prove fatal to millions of innocent people. Who knows how many weapons of mass destruction Saddam Hussein has cooked up in his evil kitchen of genocide? It is not a question of if, but when, he will use such weapons. President Bush will have to face the Iraqi threat sooner or later. It might as well be sooner.
Rick Schreiner
Pasadena, Calif.

I am appalled by the breakdown of high-ranking hawks and doves in the debate over invading Iraq. Of the six hawks profiled in NEWSWEEK, only one was ever in the armed forces. Of the six doves, at least two are combat veterans, and one, Colin Powell, is a decorated war hero. The conclusion is obvious: Bush should listen to the advisers who know what they are talking about--the ones who have seen American servicemen die in combat.
Carl Hoffman
Cleveland Heights, Ohio