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Meth Effects

As the former chair of the Montana Interagency Coordinating Council on Prevention and chairman of the Montana Children's Trust Fund, I was troubled that Tom Siebel blew into the state and decided on a course of action without contacting or coordinating with any of the broad-based prevention efforts already under way ("What Meth Made This Billionaire Do," May). The current public adulation of the Montana Meth Project has caused us to lose sight of some basic facts: Average age of first use for alcohol is 16; average age of first use of marijuana is 16; average age of first use of meth is 22. Meth is not a common gateway drug for kids. Self-reported meth use among high-school students in Montana dropped from 12.6% in 2001 to 8.3% in 2005. That's nearly a 35% decline before the Montana Meth Project even began thinking about airing scary ads. Trends in the state show that kids are now gravitating to cocaine. If we are truly concerned about them and their future, we should be investing in proven strategies that reduce risks, bolster protective factors, and engage all sectors of the community -- after-school programs, parent education, enrichment alternatives, safe places, mentoring, and summer job opportunities.

Kirk A. Astroth
Tucson, Arizona

The Heat Is On

Please don't add to the misunderstandings of an already confused populace (Numerology: "The Business of Barbecue," May). Barbecue is the process of slow-roasting meat over long periods of time with smoke and indirect heat. Grilling is searing meat quickly over direct heat from charcoal or another intense heat source. To understand the difference, I suggest a trip to Kansas City.

Ed Mickells
Overland Park, Kansas

We Can Live Without It

The editor's letter always gives me a snapshot of what's hot ("What We Can't Live Without," May). Before I leap into the issue, I need to get something off my chest. Our children are evolving with different behavioral and attitudinal personalities as innovations capture their attention and suck them into a must-have culture. But it saddens me when I see them glued to screens of one sort and size or another, or jabbering away on mobile devices. Why are they doing this? Because they can. Creating demand out of thin air is not always a good thing. On the upside, I watched futurepersons surfing in new tech-insulation wet suits on boards made from 100% recycled materials. Dude, you can't live without that.

Ken Robertson
Lostwithiel, Cornwall, U.K.

Fast Fixes

In "The Green Lantern" (May), the class at UC Davis's Energy Efficiency Center in which students explore atmospheric LED lighting is being sponsored this year by OSRAM Opto Semiconductors. Also, the correct name of Chevron's chief technology officer is John McDonald.

There were several errors in June's "The 100 Most Creative People in Business" feature. Dan Barber was nominated for -- and won -- the 2009 James Beard Out-standing Chef Award. Also, the Stone Barns Center was founded by David Rockefeller. Stephen Chau of Google Street View worked on Google's IPO when he was at Goldman Sachs.

We regret the errors.

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