Hyde on Bush : What planet does Rep. Henry J. Hyde (Column Right, March 19) live on?

Hyde makes the same mistake that Bush and other reactionary Republicans make. I am a Republican. I joined because I felt that the Republicans were generally better for business than the Democrats. However, I am also a voting member of the baby boom who grew up in the 1960s and 1970s.

Hyde says that Bush has been “a firm opponent of abortion on demand,” and goes on to laud the cause of the “unborn.” Two paragraphs later he laments the lack of “choice” in parents who send their children to public school. Let me see if I get this: Woe to those parents who have no choice in the education of their children, but God forbid we should let a pregnant woman decide if she is ready to accept the demanding trials of parenthood.

I, a professional, married woman in her 30s with a small child, resent--no, deplore--the intimation that I am not intelligent enough to decide what to do with my own body and my own future. I, and many of my generation, will vote Democratic in November because we want the freedom to decide for ourselves which art to view, which books to read and what to do with our own lives.

JENNIFER KING

San Pedro