Of Former Presidents and Current Candidates

After days of shuddering over the caliber of candidates for president, I read with exhilaration the Opinion page column "George Washington's 'Image' ," Feb. 21, regarding Presidents Washington and Lincoln. The author's contribution not only pays tribute to famous presidents, but also reveals what is needed today to live up to their standards.

The inadequate and futile attempts at greatness of the candidates of today should be vigorously rejected by voters. The author hits the right note when he states, "What matters in a candidate isn't the image he projects but the life he lives and the moral judgments he makes; not how facilely his 'handlers' craft 'a message' but how clearly he sees the actions needed to fulfill the promise of American life." Eleanor A. M. Howe, Rochester, Minn. Revealing the truth about JFK

Regarding the Opinion page article "JFK, Lincoln, and Conspiracy Theories," Jan. 16: It is time to release all, not "most" of the the Kennedy assassination material.

When Jim Garrison began to bring out information at variance with the Warren Report, I thought he was a "kook" out for publicity to further his career. However, after months of listening to (and taping) TV interviews of eyewitnesses, and contrasting observations of the staff at Parkland Hospital and those of the staff at Bethesda Naval Hospital, I have come to a far different conclusion. I now think Mr. Garrison was on the right track, but that he only discovered the possibility that there was more than appeared on the surface.

The appalling aspects of this crime point to a network of corruption and perversion of the principles of our government.

We need to take steps to bring secrecy in our government to light and to make the utmost effort to appoint men and women whose integrity will give us a government that serves us. Janice Burleigh, Vista, Calif.