Funny Letter

There was a funny letter in Sunday's NYT Book Review.  (Let me be clear: I don't agree with the letter; and I suspect the author himself meant it tongue in cheek, at least in part.  But it is funny.)

Screwing Up America
To the Editor:
In his review of Bernard Goldberg's ''100 People Who Are Screwing Up America'' (Aug. 28), Richard Brookhiser makes a welcome and eloquent plea for elevated debate. He goes on to say, ''The challenge of our lifetime is a religious totalitarian death cult.'' While it is a relief to see an intelligent conservative finally point a finger at the Bush administration, I do feel that Islamic extremists are part of the problem, too.
PETER ATKINS
Los Angeles