Regarding the Oct. 5 article "Rally for (Christopher) Savoie at D.C. (Japanese) embassy": Was it illegal for Noriko Savoie to take her children back to Japan? Apparently, according to reports of what the Tennessee court paper say.

Was it right for her ex-husband to present her with divorce papers shortly after they moved to Tennessee? Ethically and morally, I think it's safe to say it was not.

Think about it: New in Tennessee where she knows almost no one and suddenly left without emotional support by a husband who — again according to reports — remarries shortly after their divorce is final.

Did that make it right for Noriko Savoie to take ("kidnap") her two children and "flee" to Japan with them? No, but it makes it understandable, doesn't it? This couple moved from her home country to a country that is vast and strange. She is soon "abandoned" by her husband and the father of her children, who then ties her up in a legal opinion that means if she goes back to Japan she must leave her children.

I think there is something dreadfully wrong with that. Legal or no, he's the one who brought her to the United States, left her and put her in a situation that looked impossible emotionally. Then he travels to Japan, picks up his son and daughter as they're walking down the street with their mom, complains when he's arrested and points a finger at his ex-wife. According to published reports, he also complained about the amount of money the Tennessee court awarded her.

Sorry, Christopher Savoie doesn't get my sympathy. I hope the children get to stay with their mom.

george polley