Mail Call: Greenspan Speaks.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)

Readers of our Sept. 24 cover story on Alan Greenspan found our story -- and his views -- refreshing. One approved of "his criticism of the Republican Party for abandoning small government." Another wrote, "It would have been vitally helpful for us if we had known earlier that 'the Iraq war is largely about oil'."

Alan Greenspan's Legacy

Your Sept. 24 cover story on former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan and the exclusive excerpt from his book were refreshing, especially his views of the various presidents he served under ("The World According to Greenspan"). Not mentioned, however, yet emphasized in his book, are his sharp criticisms of the Bush administration's years of deficit spending and the acknowledgment that "the Iraq war is largely about oil." Though this is historically interesting now, it would have been vitally helpful for us all if we had known a long time ago that even "the oracle" had himself arrived at these conclusions.

Rev. David W. Long

West Chester, Pennsylvania

Rather than being xenophobic, let's recognize that what is good for American business is not necessarily good for the American people. Alan Greenspan's suggestion that we could open the door to highly skilled immigrants to suppress high-end salaries and close the income gap is intriguing until one realizes that it is not our highly skilled workers who are overpaid. It is the power kings at the top who are earning many times what the rest of us are. Bringing in highly skilled workers would have the same dampening effect on the middle class as outsourcing, leaving the CEOs' salaries intact. Wages stagnated at 1980s levels after opportunists took advantage of a wave of illegal immigrants. Our leaders ignored or helped to create the desperate conditions that made these people flee. Instead, we should foster the economies of neighboring nations and encourage a world view that values the balance between population and prosperity.

Kathleen Kust