| Letters to the Editor | The Journal of American History, 91.2

You have not been recognized as a subscriber to JAH online. About 480 words from this article are provided below; about 2340 words remain.

If you are a individual member of the Organization of American Historians, you may:: • login here if you have already registered for online access.; • Or if you're already logged in register your subscription.
• Set up your online account for the first time.
If you are not a member of the Organization of American Historians, you can:: • Join the OAH and receive many member benefits including print and electronic issues of the Journal of American History.
• Purchase a research pass to gain two-hour access to the entire History Cooperative web site. You will have full access to current issues of the Journal of American History (86.1-present). Note: the Research Pass does not provide access to JSTOR's holdings of the Journal of American History.
Instititutions can:: • Subscribe to this journal and receive print and electronic issues.
• Activate your existing subscription so that we recognize your IP number ranges.

| Letters to the Editor | The Journal of American History, 91.2 | The History Cooperative

Letters to the Editor

To the Editor:

In his review of Robert D. Dean's Impartial Brotherhood, Allen Hunter writes (p. 717, Sept. 2003 JAH) that John F. Kennedy's "extramarital sex" contributed to his popularity. During JFK's presidency, his promiscuity was not widely known, and it has hurt his popularity in the years since his death.

Perhaps it is dangerous for a book reviewer to make predictions. On page 739 of the same issue, Dean J. Kotlowski writes that "recognition for same-sex marriages remains a distant dream." Not in Massachusetts as of November 2003. President George W. Bush is not happy and reversal is possible. The reviewer tells us that the U.S. Supreme Court in 1986 upheld "Georgia's law barring sodomy." That decision has now been reversed. Admittedly, Bush is again unhappy and a new reversal is a possibility. Not a probability in my opinion ... but this time, I may be making a bad prediction.

Franklin D. Roosevelt was not in office 13 years but 12 and some 6 weeks, despite Jeanne Nienaber Clarke's statement (p. 699).

Bernard Sinsheimer

Boulogne, France

Editorial note: Dean J. Kotlowski and Jeanne Nienaber Clarke preferred not to respond.

To the Editor:

Bernard Sinsheimer is right. Although many journalists, politicians, and members of his administration knew, Kennedy's "promiscuity was not widely known" during his lifetime, nor does Dean state otherwise. Dean does suggest, however, that those close to him could convincingly communicate to the public images of a masculine Kennedy because their own knowledge of his "campaign of sexual conquest" offset their awareness of "the failure of his own body to support other expressions of male prowess" (Impartial Brotherhood, p. 183).

Allen Hunter

New York University
New York, New York

To the Editor:
In her review of my video, Struggling Unions (Dec. 2003 JAH), Dorothy Sue Cobble suggests that it is unfair to hold unions to higher standards of integrity than we hold corporations. In the video, the union leaders and experts speaking are only asking that we hold them to the same standards. In response to the corporate scandals involving Enron, World-Com, and Arthur Anderson, two business-friendly members of the U.S. Congress, Sen. Paul Sarbanes and Rep. Michael Oxley, sponsored the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the most important piece of corporate reform legislation since the Securities and Exchange Act. Backed by enlightened business groups like the Business Roundtable, the legislation passed the Congress overwhelmingly. All that we are asking is that the American labor movement under the new leadership of AFL-CIO president John Sweeney show the same leadership. The American union member is just as vulnerable as the small investor. There is much that the leadership of the AFL-CIO and their allies could do to make unions more democratic and honest even without labor law reform.
. . .

There are about 2340 more words in this article. Please log in (or, if you are not yet an authorized user, please go to the User Setup page) to gain full access rights. Or if you're already logged in register your subscription.