letters.

• Position: Letter to the Editor

Should Killers Be Killed?

The death penalty is a terrible thing ("Innocent on Death Row," 9/18/00). No human being deserves to be killed by another human being. And some innocent person may die--like Shareef Cousin, who almost got the death penalty for a crime he didn't commit.

REBEKA RACZ New York, N.Y.

Shareef Cousin's story is simply heartbreaking.

EMILY WHITE Lisbon Falls, Me.

To be honest, I'm not sure if I'm for or against the death penalty. I'm probably more for it than against it, but reading this article made me think twice. I've always thought executions seemed to give the family of the victim some sort of closure. But when a person is wrongly accused, it makes me doubt the death penalty.

KATE CASSITY Dallas, Tex.

Death row is a little much for a 17-year-old who claims not to have killed anyone.

JENNIFER GILKEY Nortonville, Ky.

The death penalty is cruel and unusual punishment. It makes us stoop down to the level of criminals. ANDREANA TSAKANIKAS New York, N.Y,

Your article was an opinionated, one-sided view. But the gritty details of a killer's mind and the reasons for the origin of the death penalty were covered as well--on page 30 ("They Killed for Kicks"), after several articles unrelated to the death penalty.

REBECCA GUTIERREZ Dallas, Tex.

The Homework Crunch

There is way too much homework ("Do Students Get Too Much Homework?" 9/18/00). I wake up, go to school from 8:30 to 3:06, go to volleyball practice until 5;30, then work until 11:00. I have from 11:30 to 7:00 to get my homework done and to rest for the big test the next day. Totally not cool! I do think homework helps, because knowledge is power. But when will I ever have time to be with my family and friends?

ERIN NURMI Angora, Minn.

I think students are overpowered by homework. It is unfair to those who play sports or have other extracurricular activities.

MATT STACHURA Conesus, N.Y.

It is not just too much homework that is nonsense. It is standardized tests as well. Teachers are always having to apply stupid standards to what they're teaching. These...