“letter to the editor” from 10/3 edition

To the editor:

I would like to take issue with a letter to the editor submitted by Dawn Dneaster in last week’s “Temple News.” Dawn makes the same assertions that I have heard from many fanatical hawks over the last week or so. They seem to believe that any criticism of the war or President Bush’s motives are comparable to being unpatriotic or completely partisan. Quite the opposite is true.
I question the war effort simply because of my love for America, and I criticize the leaders of my own Democratic Party for tagging along with the Bush agenda.
Dawn says that it is “hateful rhetoric” to entertain the notion that Bush may have less than pure motives for the war. That is simply a ridiculous argument. Karl Rove, the President’s political strategist has let it be known that Republican candidates should use the war for their benefit. The timing is more than a little questionable. It just happens that a month before a critical mid-term election, Iraq has become such a danger that we need to attack? I think not. As Rove himself said (in reference to the war,) “You don’t play your best cards until you need them.”
The other truly outlandish (and rather irrelevant) point that Dawn makes is in reference to the 2000 election. She says that Bush is absolutely our rightful leader and should not be questioned because “Bush won 29 states… Gore got 19.” Well, that’s all well and good. We’ll just ignore the fact that among Bush’s 29 were such bastions of population as Wyoming(3 electoral votes), Alaska (3 electorals), the Dakotas (3 electorals each), Montana (3 electorals), and Idaho (4 electorals). Gore on the other hand, had to settle for California (54 electorals), New York (33 electorals), Pennsylvania (23 electorals), and Ilinois (22 electorals.)
Do not, Dawn, question the credibility of myself and many other Americans who are wary of rushing head-first into a lengthy, costly, and deadly war without first debating it. Your arguments why we should shut up and support the war are flimsy at best. It is one thing to use politically charged rhetoric when it comes to “lockboxes” or “fuzzy math.” It is quite another when it comes to war. Hopefully the Bush administration and hawks like Dawn will realize this and reflect on our options – and realize that war is not the right one.

-Christopher Sgro
Junior
Political Science

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