[Peace-discuss] Re: letter to the editor

[Ricky Baldwin]

Great letter, Susan!

Everyone has such thoughtful things to say, and in
such a variety of styles, too!  Everybody who hasn't
written a letter needs to dothis right away!  It's
very "liberating", if you'll pardon the expression.

Folks who feel short on material, check out Carl's
weekly news reports and other news items from AWARE's
listserv archives.  There's plenty there.  Even the
News-Gazette and DI carry interesting tidbits every
day, desperately in need of comment.

My two cents,

Ricky 

--- Susan Davis <sgdavis at uiuc.edu> wrote:
> To the editor,
> 
> Recently yourand letters page has been full of the
> crowing about the United 
> States victory over Iraq.  Letter writers seem sure
> that the peace has been 
> won clearly, cleanly, ethically and with minimal
> negative consequences for 
> the United States and the whole Middle East. Less
> becoming, some of your 
> correspondents describe those who continue to oppose
> that war and 
> occupation  as destructive, irrational, mush-minded
> pinheads.  Isn't the 
> English language great?  Maybe these writers are
> correct and nearly a third 
> of American minds are so deeply warped they are
> unable to think straight. 
> But on a closer look most of these celebratory
> letters don't strike me as 
> the products of much thought.
> 
> It's my sincere hope that American soldiers will not
> be stationed for 
> decades protecting Iraq's oil fields and trying keep
> the lid on explosive 
> ethnic and religious conflicts. We can always hope.
> I wish profoundly that 
> they will all come home as soon as possible, healthy
> and unpoisoned, to a 
> strong and fair economy they can find jobs in, fine
> veterans benefits 
> including education and excellent health-care, and
> peaceful futures for 
> their children. These are things many veterans of
> the first Gulf War are 
> still waiting for.
> 
>   It would be wonderful if the Iraqi people had
> confidence that the United 
> States could successfully to install democracy from
> above, though the 
> leader we've tapped, Ahmed Chalabi, appears to
> arouse a lot of antagonism, 
> even rioting, on arrival in his own country. It
> would be great if the Iraqi 
> people were not deeply resentful of American
> corporations making 
> super-profits off the reconstruction of their
> nearly-destroyed country.  We 
> can always hope that they won't be.
> 
> It will be a relief if the United States does not
> push on into Syria or 
> Iran in search of terrorists and the elusive weapons
> of mass destruction, 
> thus dragging the entire region into a much wider
> war. It's just possible, 
> despite every indication from the White House and
> the State Department that 
> this might well be the plan.
> 
> And it would be so comforting if the vast majority
> of the world's 
> population who are opposed to this war also turn out
> to be uninformed 
> mush-minds rather than thoughtful and concerned
> citizens terrified of the 
> United States intentions and worried about the
> future of the world.
> 
> In short, fellow readers of the News-Gazette, let's
> keep hoping.
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> Susan Davis
> Urbana
> 
> 
> 
> 701 West Michigan Avenue
> 
> Urbana, Illinois 61801
> 
> 217 -- 367 -- 4182
> 


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