Motor-Voter Bill: Making Voting Easy

The Opinion page article "Renew a License and Register to Vote?," March 30, goes too far toward making voting easy or perhaps irresponsible. Is going to the public library or the county seat really too burdensome? Or are we desperately trying to develop casual voters?

The new provision against fraud is a farce. How would it be any more effective than laws that prohibit lying on applications for driver's licenses, unemployment or welfare benefits, or work permits? The Senate's "enhancements," allowing for the use of street corners, vacant lots, and other people's addresses as the address of record for voter registration, combined with the prior elimination of residency requirements, will invite politicians to orchestrate mass registration of "new" residents before elec tions. That could mean 1,000 new voters registering just before an election who will be eligible to vote on local property taxes, abortion, or other issues.

The author proposes that the postal service subsidize the mailing of voter-registration materials. If this happens, other postal rates will have to increase to cover the subsidy and taxes will also increase to pay for the additional registration locations. Federal meddling in state voter registration procedure is unnecessary. Richard T. Wojciechowski, Springfield, Va. The mystery of higher education

The Opinion page article "Why Not Run a Business Like a Good University?," March 23, is an academic daydream. The author should provide more evidence on what "unnecessary functions had been weeded out" of universities or describe "the more effective use of technology."

Unlike most other professions, the institution of higher education, as well as the performance of faculty, is "enshrouded in mystery." Most research indicates that both the process and outcomes of education can only be surmised. The author notes that colleges and universities "plan more strategically and use (their) limited resources more efficiently." This has not been proven true by current research. Lefteris Lavrakas, Costa Mesa, Calif.