Bill Wyman is not shoveling dirt , but slinging mud on JFK Jr.'s body before it's even been recovered. Regardless of whether his premise -- that John Kennedy Jr. was more style than substance -- is true, his timing absolutely sucks. His comments are out of bounds, not because they run contrary to the public idolatry surrounding John Kennedy Jr., but out of common courtesy for the recently deceased. Wyman either should have saved his comments for a later date or, if he felt so strongly about Kennedy's supposed vapidness, shouldn't have waited until now to slam him.

Unfortunately, John Kennedy Jr. is most likely under 110 feet of water, and in no position to defend himself from a classless act like Wyman. Apparently Wyman's conscience is submerged at about the same depth.

-- Fred F. Smith Jr.

In attacking a nation's regard for a poised icon, Bill Wyman has bought into exactly what he seems to be rejecting. Does he so desperately need an excuse to buck the inevitable outpouring of media mourning? In acknowledging the hype surrounding fallen John Kennedy Jr., he has answered questions we haven't asked. We were satisfied to watch JFK Jr. grow and stumble and celebrate. And in the end, we are saddened to see him go.

No one ever proclaimed him a writer. No one was ever able to put their finger on precisely what his role was in our society. So it is useless now, and indeed disrespectful, to ponder his vestigial qualities as a celebrity. In this day and age, his grace, damn good looks and potential only beginning to be tapped were rare qualities worthy of our astonishment. The fact that he accomplished anything in the face of our grandiose expectations and beneath the weight of such a legacy is amazing. He was a true gentleman.

-- Karen Cameron Boyden

After a weekend of virtually 24 hour coverage on all major networks of the disappearance of JFK Jr. (and, oh yeah, those other two people), I was left with the very same feelings about Kennedy articulated so well by Wyman. It sounds like he was a nice guy, and I'm very sorry for his family, but have I missed something here? Clearly in this country celebrity, in and of itself, is the most important credential.

-- Russ Lehman
Olympia, Wash.

The beautiful and the damned
BY JAKE TAPPER
(07/17/99)

Referring to Christy Turlington and Cindy Crawford as "eye candy" offends me. The writer assumes a male (and, it should be noted, heterosexual) reader -- John Travolta is an "actor," but Cindy Crawford is a sex object -- and objectifies these women in an insulting way. Obviously Turlington and Crawford are known (and rich and famous) for their physical beauty, but referring to them as "eye candy" is degrading.

-- Jennifer Grant

The last Kennedy
BY DAVID HOROWITZ
(07/17/99)

David Horowitz's reference to John F. Kennedy Jr. as "the last Kennedy" perpetuates one of the darker aspects of the Kennedy family's legacy: its sexism and its lack of expectations for its women. In fact, Caroline Kennedy has assembled a family legacy of accomplishment far greater than her brother's and probably would have continued to do so even had he lived. She is the "last Kennedy."

-- Anastasia Pantsios

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