Times Poll and Taxes

You just can’t resist putting a negative pessimistic pall on even upbeat stories. The headline says “Crash Makes Many Fearful About Future” (Part I, Nov. 4). “Many” is 31%. “Fear” is not an ingredient in your questions. The story here is that 66% are not fearful but are optimistic.

And only 11%, 10%, 8% and 5% variously “expect” to “postpone, cancel or reduce spending” on various products. Hardly a landslide of pessimism but yet the headline, which is about as far as most readers go, presents a quite distorted impression.

On Oct. 8, you did indeed run a story about “Consumer Confidence Nears 15-Year High.” But it appeared in a four-inch article at the bottom of the page in the Business Section. The story you colored as downbeat you placed on page 1.

ERNIE KREILING

La Canada