LETTERS TO THE EDITOR (04/20/03)

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

War against Iraq was unjustified

Dear Editor:

Supporters of the war against Iraq repeatedly cite the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001, as its justification, but the only connection between Saddam Hussein and the 9/11 terrorists is that they are all Arabs and all bad. For people to whom the entire Arab world is one big blur, waging a war against Iraq to overthrow Saddam Hussein because of 9/11 may make sense. To me, it makes as much sense as would attacking Belarus to remove Alyaksandr Lukashenka in response to the genocide in the former Yugoslavia.

Other justifications for the war are equally unconvincing. So Hussein has weapons of mass destruction. Who doesn't? So he's a ruthless dictator. He has plenty of company. While the possibility of profiting from the "liberation" of Iraq's oil fields may be one of the motives behind the war, as many suspect, it seems to be a secondary one.

Could the real motives behind America's war against Iraq be primarily irrational? We psychoanalyze Hussein, searching for clues to his behavior in his childhood, but we prefer to believe that our own leaders are making rational decisions, guided by logic and facts, in support of, at best, our national interests, at worst, their own interests. Could it be that President George W. Bush is influenced by personal psychological factors, as well as by collective fantasies and projections?

Doug Wead, author of "All the President's Children," a recently published book about the children of U.S. presidents, has identified two typical ways of seeking the approval of one's father: mimicry and completion. President Bush's war against Iraq both mimics his father's war against Iraq and, with its explicit goal of regime change, seeks to complete the task that the first President Bush was criticized for having left unfinished.

To the extent that Americans support what is to an amazing degree Mr. Bush's war, it is largely because the war also serves collective purposes. With 9/11, terrorism - popularly identified with Arabs and with Islam - became the archetypal enemy for many Americans. Denied the catharsis of bringing the perpetrators of 9/11 to justice by trying and executing them, and having failed to capture Osama Bin Laden, Americans have found in Saddam Hussein a surrogate embodiment of evil to banish from the world.

While there are sometimes good reasons to fight a war, there are almost never good reasons to act as the aggressor and start a war. How many "wars of liberation" have had desirable outcomes? This veteran regrets seeing American military personnel, wealth and sophisticated technology placed in the service of a primitive and irrational psychology.

Karen Bapst
Port Charlotte, Fla.

Why the U.S. fights Saddam's regime

Dear Editor:

There are many misconceptions spread by the press and supported by "anti-war" malcontents. The demonstrators protest against President George W. Bush, yet you hear little or nothing about Saddam Hussein. A perspective must be developed to balance these views.

Without a doubt, 9/11 was a pivotal point in our nation's history. It was a wake-up call to the reality of Arab extremists wishing not only to commit acts of terror, but to finally bring this country down. The final goal is to establish a pan-Arabic empire with Islam ruling. Just like in the past, if you do not convert to Islam, you lose your head.

The protesters and communist-leaning lackeys would like us to believe that we do not understand why the "world" hates us. They also argue that "violence leads to more violence" and other nonsensical slogans. They do not apply. The last administration tried the timid approach by not reacting to acts of terror. The result? The terrorists became convinced that we can be destroyed.

The continuation of this timid strategy would have invited more and more acts of terror. To what end? Since the terrorists and terrorist states have become emboldened and convinced that the United States is ripe for destroying, you either react or wait to be hit over and over again. Does one then capitulate to stop the terror? Do we raise a white flag and invite Osama Bin Laden to run the country?

Each nation has the right and the obligation to protect itself. The terrorists are bent on destroying the United States. The horrific act of 9/11 was a declaration of war.

Roman G. Golash
Palatine, Ill.

Odesa Philharmonic deserves kudos

Dear Editor:

Over the years I have been reading with great interest about the Odesa Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of an American, Hobart Earle. This man is responsibe for introducing the great composers of the world to Ukraine own composers' works, which the people there knew so little about.

Maestro Hobart had been able to have members of the philharmonic orchestra once again raise their heads in pride not only in their own country, but around much of the world. Their recordings are becoming greatly sought.

More info on the Odesa Philharmonic Orchestra can be found on its website: http://www.odessaphilharmonic.org/record/rec_mou2.htm.

Len Krawchuk
Winnipeg

| Home Page |