Please send your questions for publication to prudence@slate.com.

Dear Prudence,

"RS " ' s disgusting letter concerning meal and gift parity, along with her psychotically misguided ideas of the whys and wherefores of giving gifts are a great deal more than "alarming." I found myself deeply troubled by her fantastical notions and saddened by the possibility that her children might be taught these same ideas. Needless to say, I thought your response to RS was absolutely correct.

Nevertheless, I must take issue with your slander of mercenaries. A mercenary makes it clear he/she is fighting for money, not attempting to hide the expectation of booty behind a wedding invitation.

--Cordially, ML III in Hong Kong

Dear M,

Prudie thanks you for your support and regrets that she may have insulted official mercenaries. If RS, our bride with the tally sheet, is by any chance reading this week's Prudie, she may be interested to know that there was much mail essentially calling her a woman with a cash register where her heart ought to be.

--Prudie, assuredly

Dear Prudence,

As a young man approaching 40, I am confused about how I am supposed to react to women's fashions. At a recent conference of professionals, we were seated around a U-shaped table--glass--with no tablecloth. Several of these professional women across from me were wearing Ally McBeal skirts. They spent the entire meeting pulling their skirts down so their lingerie preferences were not so obvious. Am I supposed to look at the ceiling the entire meeting, steal the occasional glance, or just assume it's a '90s thing?