Dear Mbo,

I have to say I agree with seed here. Lincoln was noted more for his mercy than his vengefullness-he spared the life of someone who had deserted under fire. Junior's sentiments more sound like the theme song for a militia or KKK branch.

Prisons are now often a big for-profit business. Justice still is dispensed with racial prejudice-Blacks and Hispanics typically get much longer sentences for using crack than whites do for using powder cocaine. The "Three Strikes " law puts offenders away for very long periods for relatively low-level offenses. Building prisons in remote rural areas means that families in urban areas can rarely get to see imprisoned relatives. It also contributes to further polarization between white guards and Black and Hispanic prisoners.

To compare this to the genius of Hank Sr, who could, in a few words and a simple melody, capture the essence of an emotion like lonliness, in a way that's been matched by few and exceeded by none in half a century, is to come up pretty shabby.

Mary McCaffrey