DEAR ABBY: I think you were way off base in your response to the lady who asked whether she should let her mother-in-law read the letter on computer disk that her father-in-law left to his 2 1/2-year-old granddaughter. If the man intended the letter to be read by everybody and his brother, he wouldn't have addressed it to his granddaughter.
In my opinion, this has nothing to do with "bringing peace to a grieving widow," but rather with a domineering woman sticking her nose where it should not be. Just because the letter is on a computer disk doesn't mean it's any less a letter than if it were written on paper and sealed in an envelope. By advocating allowing the mother-in-law to read that letter, you're also advocating denying that little girl her right to a precious gift given to her by her grandfather out of love because he knew he wouldn't be there to watch her grow up.
I'm just curious -- do you also advocate opening and rewrapping children's gifts before they receive them just to make some adult "feel better" about knowing what's in them? Remember that even the youngest members of our society deserve our respect, and one of the aspects of that is to respect their property. -- A READER WHO DISAGREES
DEAR READER: The child's grandmother is not "everybody and his brother," and I do not agree that allowing the grandmother to read the letter would diminish its value to the 2-year-old when she's finally old enough to appreciate it. However, intelligent minds can disagree, and I respect your opinion although it does not coincide with mine.