To the Editor:

I was particularly taken by comparing the pictures of the Student Union in the Alumni Journal (Winter 2002, p. 23, circa 1968, and back cover, present), and the Homecoming articles in which alumni mention the many changes to the campus. Perhaps you can find old maps or create a graphic, from an overhead perspective, of the various changes to the campus over the years. I'm afraid I wouldn't recognize the place without it.

-- David Rosenman '76
Administrative Law Judge, State of California

To the Editor:

I sympathize with Imam Kasim Kopuz's regret that he has had to defend his religion in the wake of Sept. 11 ("Refuting Myths and Misconceptions About Islam," Winter 2002). Yet his claim that "Islam has nothing to do with the terrorist attacks" is profoundly simplistic. A religion does not simply exist in rarefied form on some Platonic plane. It exists in the way it is practiced by its adherents, and, like most religions, Islam is not monolithic. For example, every single Muslim might agree with the Imam that one must not kill an innocent person, yet there might well be a difference of opinion over who may be considered "innocent."

Certainly, the vast majority of Muslims share Imam Kopuz's vision of Islam as a religion of peace. Yet, as shown most starkly by the demonstrations held by tens of thousands of Muslims extolling Osama bin Laden as a hero shortly after the Sept. 11 attacks, it appears that there is a competing version of Islam adhered to by a distinct and sizeable minority of Muslims worldwide.

--Sincerely,
Michael J. Z. Mannheimer '91

To the Editor:

It is interesting to note the content of the feature article in the Winter 2002 Alumni Journal edition on Mr. Kopuz and "Refuting Myths and Misconceptions about Islam." In the interest of fair and balanced reporting and journalistic responsibility, you may want to edit articles in your publication more robustly. While the general content is cohesive and the primary invitation of the author can be easily inferred, there are several factual inaccuracies in the article.

For example: 1) The statement that "Islam has nothing to do with the terrorist attacks" is nonsensical; Islamic militants were the individuals responsible for conducting the attacks. Granted that they may be militant in their views, Islam is still intimately connected to these people. 2) "Jihad" translated literally from Arabic into English means "holy war," not "just war." There can be quite a difference in one's interpretation of these two phrases. . . . It is obvious after reading the article that it was written in an attempt to present a single viewpoint, and, as such, is not a legitimate piece of objective journalistic work. . . .

-- Best Regards,
Jack Fox '96

Editor's note: The story referred to -- "Refuting myths and misconceptions about Islam," an interview with Imam Kasim Kopuz, MA '99, PhD candidate -- is an alumni profile that presents the interviewee's point of view and, as such, the article was indeed written "to present a single viewpoint." It is not and does not pretend to be an objective overview and interpretation of Islam. It is, rather, one person's experience and interpretation of Islam -- in this case, the experience and interpretation of a respected scholar and religious leader.

To the Editor:

I was saddened to read of the death of Professor Nathan Hakman. As part of a generation of then-budding law students, I took his constitutional law course in 1977. The course included a mind-numbing range of topics from Marbury v. Madison, performing legal research, to U.S. Supreme Court politics. The phrase "grade inflation" was unknown to him.

One semester, while living in rural Port Crane, I discovered that we were neighbors. In the local country store, where shotgun shells could be purchased as readily as milk, he was known only as "Nate."

Hakman's real research interest was the study of predicting judicial behavior using empirical methods. Many years later, having the privilege of serving as a judge myself, I developed a new respect for his efforts to understand and predict the complex enterprise of the judiciary.

The University community has lost a wonderful asset.

-- Very truly yours,
Steven P. Cullen '79