From the Editors
Readers of the October issue grooved on “How Music Works,” by Talking Heads co-founder David Byrne. “The concept of Music of the Spheres has always rung true to me,” said Mark Nutting. “Is it not possible that it has influenced our genetic makeup?” Our story about CIA operative Douglas Groat, “The Code Thief,” elicited sympathy and criticism. “It is unbelievable that a person who risked his life for our country received such a ‘thank you,’ ” Robert O’Fisch says, while Shawn Wilson felt Groat’s actions after he left the agency were “criminal.” Henry Wiencek’s piece about Thomas Jefferson as a slaveholder, “Master of Monticello,” inspired the most feedback. Gerald Karey cautioned on Facebook, “It’s easy but not fair to judge him from our perspective.” But the majority of comments expressed disillusionment.
Jefferson’s Disgrace
The contrast of what I was brought up to believe about Jefferson and the new evidence in this article is devastating. Now I see an acquisitive, house-proud, arrogant, self-satisfied user of people. That may have been the norm among rich and privileged Virginians then, but now I’ve removed Jefferson from my mental pedestal. He is rescued from being totally smashed on the floor by his brilliance, his deliciously curious mind and the beauty of the University of Virginia campus.
Rita Stevens
Online Comment
Thanks to Mr. Wiencek for a fresh look at Jefferson. By uncovering his eager embrace of the slave marketplace, you have created a new opportunity for a healthy dialogue about the role of slavery in America. Jefferson was no doubt brilliant, but there has always been something creepy about the clash between his thoughts and behavior. I finished the article wondering if Monticello was a marvel of invention, an example of a good man trying to make the best of a bad system or a Jonestownian experiment by an emotionally disturbed man with an insatiable sense of entitlement.
Albie Davis
Thomaston, Maine
Wiencek’s story confronts us with the real Jefferson—the one who penned those majestic and immortal words of freedom in the Declaration of Independence while engaging in and perpetuating a system of human bondage for profit. Interestingly, the author compares Jefferson to George Washington and concludes, “Never did Washington suggest that blacks were inferior or that they should be exiled.” Yet our first president was the owner of numerous slaves whose freedom was delayed until after his death. So Washington didn’t believe African-Americans were inferior—but it was acceptable to enslave them. Curious. In his effort to debunk one myth, Wiencek may have unwittingly created another. This, I am afraid, is the danger of hero worship.
Dale M. Wiley
Danville, Virginia
Arresting Personality
Not only is the battered file cabinet that belonged to Daniel Ellsberg’s psychiatrist a national treasure [“The Ellsberg Files”], so is Ellsberg himself. I was arrested with him and 111 others—mostly members of Veterans for Peace—at the White House on March 19, 2011. Nervous about being handcuffed for hours, I marveled at Ellsberg entertaining us with handkerchief magic tricks. He was used to being arrested for nonviolent civil disobedience. May the old warrior keep up the good works.
Ronald Van Deusen
Clayton, New York
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Comments (4)
Greetings: Since my grandfather, New York City publisher John Byrne Kelly, was Theodore Roosevelt's "PR Man," I'd like to suggest a correction to the article in Smithsonian's November issue. Colonel Roosevelt was not running for "an unprecedented" third term when he was wounded during his Bull Moose Campaign in 1912. William McKinley took the oath for his second term in September 1900. In March 1901, he was shot and mortally wounded. After his death, McKinley's Vice President, Theodore Roosevelt, 42, was sworn in as President on September 14, 1901. President Theodore Roosevelt completed the remainder of William McKinley's second term. He then campaigned for the presidency, won and completed a four-year term in 1909. He was followed in office by William Howard Taft. In 1912, Colonel Roosevelt was seeking his second election to the presidency. As proof, simply recall the flak President Gerald Ford received for his campaign buttons that read: "Re-elect President Gerald Ford." Although Theodore Roosevelt could have retained the honorary title of "President" after his term in office, he insisted on being call "Colonel Roosevelt" because it's the highest rank you can hold in the U.S. Military and still lead your troops into battle. Sincerely, Karolyn Byrne Kelly-O'Keefe Harrisburg, PA
Posted by Karolyn Byrne Kelly-O'Keefe on December 14,2012 | 12:07 AM
To The Editors: Regarding your cover story (November, 2012): Lincoln, of course, wore eyeglasses, as any schoolchild can tell you. However, an overlooked tidbit of Lincoln trivia is his specific choice of eyewear, which elicited comments from a number of observers. From the White House (“short-shanked gold spectacles” that “sat low on his nose”) to the War Department Telegraph Office (“specially-made with short spring ends to clasp the sides of his head just back of his eyes), to the Gettysburg Address (“a pair of spectacles with short bows, clasping on the temples just behind the eyes”), these unusual glasses were described by a number of individuals. These were not, in fact, “specially-made”, but rather an 1859 patent design by American inventors John Burt and William Willard. I noticed these spectacles 15 years ago at the Library of Congress while researching eyeglass patents – the pair survives, and were in Lincoln’s pocket on the night of Ford’s Theater. Despite considerable searching, only a half-dozen of these remarkably light-weight folding eyeglasses have been found world-wide, an almost unknown piece of Linconalia. Alan McBrayer Charlotte, NC
Posted by Alan McBrayer on November 8,2012 | 04:33 PM
CORRECTION: Made an error - "...told the VA about 4000 support groups that can help w/PTSD; helped pass health care legislation covering NY State Reserves & National Guard for depleted uranium..." I apologize for my mistake in comment #1. Roland Van Deusen
Posted by Roland Van Deusen on October 31,2012 | 04:08 PM
The arrest of Ellsberg and 112 others was the 8th anniversary of our Iraq war. Associated Press covered the story, and our war was soon over. Perhaps civil disobedience works on Obama. Veterans For Peace also helps 85,000 Iraqis get safe drinking water, delivered 54,000 free phone cards to patients at 148 VA hospitals, supports hospitals and schools in Vietnam & Afghanistan, helped 87,000 stoplossed troops get an extra year to apply for their back pay, 98,000 military spouse students restore their college funds, told the VA about 4000 support groups that can help with depleted uranium (the "new Agent Orange"),helped expose a faulty Pentagon study on toxic battleground dust, etc. I'm currently working on an online YouTube video to motivate veterans to seek help for their PTSD. The words to be used therein were successfully "field-tested" by 400 families in Nebraska, living with PTSD. Roland Van Deusen
Posted by Roland Van Deusen on October 29,2012 | 08:38 PM