To the Editor:

Re: “Financial aid woes point out system’s flaws,” (11/12): Yet another “wouldn’t it be nice if” column. Ms. Blau should be aware that the reason her friend pays only $300 for her law school tuition is that people pay double the income tax we pay here. Look around you, Ms. Blau. A private institution such as Yale with a $12 billion endowment cannot exist in France. The buildings you sit in for your classes were built by private enterprise, not the government.

Stephen Condict

Nov. 12, 2004

The writer is a catalog assistant for the Yale University Library Rare Book Team.