MELISSA BLOCK, Host:
Now we turn to your letters. On Friday's show we brought a story about a new program for IBM employees called, Project Match. It's a company-led initiative to help American workers who've lost their jobs at IBM find positions with the company overseas. The catch, they have to move and get paid the same amount as their foreign counterparts. Well, that story sparked strong reactions among our listeners. Unforgivable - that was the response from Sheila Reese(ph) of Maryland. Ms. Reese writes for a company that grew, in her words, on the backs of American workers. This type of outsourcing is unacceptable.
She concludes with this question - how about bringing back those jobs to American soil so our citizens can work? But we also heard a very different opinion. Diane Forney(ph) of Lawrence, Kansas teaches foreign languages and literature to college students. She says IBM's program could provide valuable international perspective. Ms. Forney writes, the experience of working and living in a foreign country for oneself and one's family is an experience of incalculable value. Ask anyone who's been fortunate enough to study or live abroad.
On Friday we brought you another story that led many of you to write that of Michael Phelps and the marijuana pipe he was pictured with. As we heard in Tom Goldman's report, the incident has prompted a debate over how seriously the use of marijuana should be taken. And some of you felt inclined to send us your perspective. Yesmen Paria(ph) of Durham, North Carolina saw no humor in the scandal. She writes, to accept Michael Phelps indiscretion with marijuana is to embrace the violence and horror the drug trafficking festers.
But John Cooper, writer of Westmont, Illinois thinks Phelps deserves credit for admitting he made a mistake. He writes, it takes true fortitude, integrity and courage to admit fault and accept the consequences. Would that the crooked bankers, shady real estates tycoons and megalomaniacal CEOs followed Phelps' lead? And finally, we have a correction to our story last week about the Grammy nominees for album of the year.
Music critic Tom Moon said the British rock band Radiohead received its first nomination for album of the year, with its latest release, "In Rainbows." That is incorrect. While Radiohead has never won a Grammy for album of the year, the band had previously been nominated for album of the year for the albums, "OK Computer" and "Kid A."
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
BLOCK: We always want to hear from you. Please write to us at npr.org, click on, contact us, at the top of the page. Also, please tell us how you pronounce your name and where you're from. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.