Iraq: We Broke It, We Should Fix It
Iraq:
We Broke It, We Should Fix It
To the Editor:
In response to Martin Blanco [Letter Hive, January 26, 2007, âLessons Of Historyâ]:
While some of your points were valid, you did little to counter the assertions made in Stan Rajczewski Jrâs letter of January 12 [âWithdrawal From Iraq Wonât âStop The Dyingââ]. What Mr Rajczewskiâs letter lacked in decorum, yours made up for in partisan rant. Your dislike of President Bush is obvious, every sentence written flows from it; substantive debate has little chance under such conditions.
As you duly noted, many people do believe this war to be a colossal foreign policy blunder. Many of these same people believe as well that a rapid, untimely withdrawal will result in chaos politically, militarily, and socially, with the net result being a slaughter of genocidal magnitude. Like it or not America broke Iraq, we are now obligated to fix it. This was the thrust of Mr Rajczewskiâs letter, and I would agree with him.
Further, your rhetoric toward FDR was somewhat hagiographic in nature. While your overview of his leadership qualities were generally accurate, FDR enacted wartime policies that would have sent todayâs left into an apoplectic rage: not the least being the internment of Japanese Americans, the imprisonment of some 40,000 war dissidents, and the censoring of US citizensâ mail. Of particular note was your assertion that he âcompelled American Industry to contribute to the war effort, not profit by it.â In fact, profiteering was so rampant that the Truman Commission was established specifically to curb this omnipotent wartime practice, giving Truman a public reputation for honesty and integrity that was well earned.
Your assertion that the 9/11 attacks were successful because âThe Bush administration was asleep at the wheelâ is an acute example of my opening paragraph and further, a complete exoneration of the Clinton administrationâs considerable role in not putting forth measures that might have prevented 9/11.
In conclusion, while the season for beating up on liberals has ended, iIt is apparently still open season on conservatives, as the ignorant and belligerent of our ilk will readily testify.
James E. Swift
11 Cedarhurst Trail, Sandy Hook                          January 31, 2007