Campaign behavior that should be retired

I received enough mail from candidates in the local primaries to fill a recycling bin. What did all these mailings and canvassings accomplish beyond wasting valuable natural resources? If candidates were seeking name recognition, they got it -- but the adults in my household would not vote for any candidate showing such disregard for the environment.

The unwanted communication didn't stop there. The automated phone calls our family received leading up to the primary disrupted our dinners and interfered with getting our children to school How would interfering with family time have benefited any candidate, especially when there was no live voice on the phone to answer questions about the candidate's views?

Grace Karmiol, Rockville

Michel Martin's Sept. 11 op-ed, "Independent -- and disenfranchised," displayed a complete lack of understanding of political parties in arguing for her right to vote in the District's Sept. 14 primary.

Ms. Martin thinks she should have a say in a party she does not want to join for a variety of reasons.

In Virginia, voters don't register by political party. So anyone can vote in the Democratic primary this year and the Republican primary next year. As a result, both parties have some members who vote in the primary for the opposition candidate they believe would have the least chance to win the general election.

Ms. Martin should join a party and participate in selecting candidates with like-minded people. Her reasons for not doing so are inappropriate.

Dorsey Wittig, Vienna