Term Limits

* Re “High Court Bars States From Limiting Congressional Terms,” May 23:

I still say, as I said when our term-limits initiative was being prepared, that we cannot bar anybody from election to Congress, but we can bar anybody from a party nomination, and force the perpetual officeholder to run as an independent--and start his or her next term with no party seniority toward committee rank. The Constitution says nothing about political parties. The Arkansas case was bad law, and apparently our own law has been bad law. If we really want term limits imposed on members of Congress, we should start over by controlling the primary ballot, and make those who won’t quit really swim uphill as independents.

Of course, Congress could solve the problem for us, by doing away with the seniority system, and of course it will not, any more than it will submit a term-limits amendment. The viable alternative is for the states to invoke the alternative means of submitting an amendment, by calling for a convention to frame one and bypassing the antagonist.

GILBERT S. BAHN

Moorpark

* The most disturbing thing about the decision is the dissent--that four justices, led by Clarence Thomas, could somehow reach the tortured conclusion that a patchwork of laws passed by 50 individual states, and not the U.S. Constitution as amended, should dictate the nature of the federal Congress in Washington. Perhaps we should consider term limits for Supreme Court justices?

RICK REIDY

Hollywood