From: John Adler and Sherri Levine [jaslny@yahoo.com] Sent: Friday, June 06, 2003 3:47 PM To: rule-comments@sec.gov Subject: RE: S7-10-03 To whom it may concern at the SEC: We are shareholders in public companies through 401(k)s, Section 529 plans, and direct stock ownership. Like many, we have seen the value of our holdings plummet in recent years, threatening our retirement plans and our ability to pay for our kids' college educations. We are writing to strongly support the SEC initiative to amend its rules to increase the ability of shareholders to nominate and elect corporate directors. The current system does not give shareholders a genuine voice in who sits on the boards of the companies they own; it reminds us of "elections" held by the likes of Saddam in Iraq, Somoza in NIcaragua, or Mobutu in Zaire. We believe the current system for nominating and electing corporate directors should go the way of these dictators, and we commend the SEC for considering changes that will allow for a genuine choice in the election of boards of directors. How can shareholders hold corporate directors accountable for their performance if those directors do not face any real threat of losing their seat through a shareholder vote? We believe the SEC's mandate today is to increase corporate accountability and transparency to shareholders, and we can think of no more! fundamental mechanism for achieving this goal than creating the conditions for real elections on corporate boards. Thank you for considering our comments. John Adler and Sherri Levine 293 15th Street Brooklyn, NY 11215 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Do you Yahoo!? Free online calendar with sync to Outlook(TM).