Letters to the Editor
Alison M. Swann
Published Letters: 67 Editor's Choice: 2
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To the birthday guy and Joan
[Read the article: A few surprises in the Iraq war funding vote]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Garry, your letter made me laugh a few times. It wasn't at you. It was because I could relate to your teeth-gritting frustration and anger; the way you expressed it--with some wit and humor--made it a kind of release to read. It was as if you blew the cork off a few times. So thanks for that.
I'm glad you're out there and are having another birthday because you so clearly care deeply about our country and our world. Your passion evinces that! Sometimes (okay, often) it sucks to care, but we see what not caring (or having selfish, greedy agendas) does and that really sucks.
I meant to thank you, Joan, for the "scores" from Thursday's vote. After watching Countdown with Olberman and watching the crawler on CNN, I still hadn't found out how Hillary and Obama voted. When I went on Salon and saw you'd updated, I was pleased (at their votes and your info.). And thanks for this last piece with other votes.
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Thank you!
[Read the article: Who killed the honeybees?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Thank you for a very informative discussion of a topic that needs to be kept in the forefront! The fact that we don't know definitively what is killing the bees is all the more reason to present information in this format and keep it in all of our faces.
Nice job, Kevin!
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Fiddling, Spinning, Something's Burning
[Read the article: Operation Iraqi Neighborhood Watch?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]In his early capacities in Iraq, Petraeus seemed to have success (quieter neighborhoods) keeping his troops among the people of a town instead of running them home to a green zone-type bunker every night. But we're in the fifth year of this disaster that Bush calls a "war" and if anyone is counting on a gazillion little deals made by Americans with local sheiks and warlords accomplishing anything of true import, he (or she) is delusional.
Joan, you hit the nail on the head with the term "define success downward." The sad thing is that no matter how far down we take the measure of success, we seem unlikely to meet it if our history of failure in Iraq since we invaded it is any indication.
I'm not an elected official, but I am a "war" opponent. I don't blame Cindi Sheehan for sitting down. It's time for all of us who oppose this debacle to stand up. September is just around the corner. Let's make our representatives hear us. Let's make the world hear us demand that this administration and this congress end this now and bring all of our brave men and women home. Let's show the world how a republic works. Many, many lives depend on us.
Fool us once . . . .
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Thank you
[Read the article: Barack Obama's quiet rebellion]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]for a really good piece on Obama. It was "calm" and thoughtful and in those ways seemed to reflect Obama's person and persona according to what you write and what I see.
I want to read more, more, more stuff by you. It's helpful to me as I evaluate the Democratic candidates.
So thanks!
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Trick or Treat
[Read the article: Could Joe Biden please shut up again?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Joan, I totally agree with you about picking up the Republicans' line about timelines in the funding bill hurting the troops . . . and everything else you said. This is so frustrating. Damnit.
Biden doubles back and undercuts a valid strategy for holding this president to account and helping support our troops with a plan to get them out of Iraq. Carter apologizes for recent statements he obviously meant and had a right to say regarding Bush, who has committed the most egregious blunder in our history. (In other words, I disagree with what Pat Buchanan said on Scarborough about former presidents being some sort of special people who haven't the same First Amendment rights as the rest of us regarding what they may say about a sitting president.) A few months ago Carter changed the title of his book because people were upset that it contained the word "apartheid". Murtha, of all people, is backing down and going with the Republican rhetoric. As you said, he and Biden were among those who publicly validated this concept of tying timelines, accountability to money for the sake of the troops.
We Democrats see things differently than most of the Republicans (Chuck Hagel excluded) on this "war" and with good reason. What happened? Who is now inhabiting the bodies of these Democrats who voted for the final bill after campaigning for timelines in the first bill? Whoever is "in there" sure isn't explaining the change in any way that makes sense to me or will help our troops.
The Democrats in Congress have just got to have the courage of their (and our) convictions. I thought we've been over this. You know--the election.
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and to Muze01--
[Read the article: Could Joe Biden please shut up again?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Just read your letter. You are dead-on. Thanks for such a succinct summary of what we're (and we know who we are!) doing to ourselves.
Keep on!