Letters for February 22, 2007

Don’t invade Iraq
It appears that the Bush administration is linking some of the insurgent IEDs to Iran.

I agree if Iranians are in the country of Iraq helping the insurgents attack allied troops they are subject to attack. What I don’t agree with is if Bush tries to use Iranians inside of Iraq lending technical support to the insurgents as a premise to invade Iran.

W’s logic of declaring it legal to attack those who arm our enemies meant that the former Soviet Union could legally attack the United States to protect Soviet troops when Reagan/Bush, Sr., sent Stinger missiles to aid the mujahedin in Afghanistan in the ‘80s.

While W has suspicions only, no proof, that Iran is helping the Iraqi insurgents, the Soviet had network news footage, reported by network anchors, of mujahedin troops firing U.S.-made Stinger missiles and downing Soviet aircraft.

Following that logic of attacking those who harm Americans, the U.S. military could be sent to Columbia to destroy the cocaine crops or to Afghanistan to destroy the heroin crops. Oops. The U.S. military is already in Afghanistan but aren’t doing much to the heroin crops because it will alienate the populace and damage the Afghan economy. Meanwhile, back in the U.S., Americans suffer from crimes and deaths because of the heroin trade.

Beating the drums of war made W popular the first time until the lies came out and the non-ending bills came due. Continuing to beat the drums of war won’t work this time—history doesn’t repeat.

What do they say of someone who keeps repeating the same thing over and over again expecting a different outcome?

Dewey Quong
Reno

Nevada pols don’t care about public safety
Re “Hard of hearings” (News, Feb. 15):

Recently, Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman—a Republican—declared he was headed to Washington to lobby against Divine Strake, a 700-ton fertilizer and fuel oil explosion planned for the Nevada Test Site. Other Utah leaders, including the mayor of Salt Lake City, four Utah counties, and the entire Utah State Legislature all oppose the blast that will resuspend, in the atmosphere, radioactive particles from historic atomic tests.

“Because of the potential threat to life, health and safety [we] oppose the Divine Strake test,” reads one resolution.

Additionally, the congressional delegations of Idaho and Utah have been proactively informing the public or even opposing the test.

And in Nevada? The silence is deafening. Instead of aggressively lobbying for public safety, Gov. Gibbons, reacted to a recent protest with the vacuous statement: “Weapons testing is critical … however … we [must] ensure … the [government] is taking all necessary precautions to ensure the safety of … Nevadans.”

So—what do you plan to do governor? Anything? What about you Sens. Ensign and Reid or Reps. Berkley, Heller and Porter?

As one letter writer in Utah asks, “I don’t want these radioactive elements blown 10,000 feet into the atmosphere above my house, do you?”

Bob Tregilus
Reno

No slip of the lip
At a recent meeting of the Reno-Sparks NAACP, the membership voted to write to Nevada newspapers regarding the media-fueled controversy generated by remarks which Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del, made about Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill.

Sen. Biden’s complimentary statements were somehow twisted into some sort of a “read between the lines” criticism. We view all of this as distracting, unfortunate and uncalled for.

No fair reading of Sen. Biden’s statement can be interpreted as degrading Sen. Obama.

The candidates for president have work too important to get sidetracked by word games. Sen. Obama himself said, “I’m not going to parse his words that carefully.”

War and peace and prosperity affect people’s daily lives. Policies matter.

The pundits and the press would serve us best by focusing on the legitimate national debate.

Lucille Adin, President
Reno-Sparks Branch No. 1112