Letters to the Editor
Published Letters: 2149 Editor's Choice: 7
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@Gator90 - Funny you should mention it...
[Read the article: Large number of Americans favor violent attacks against civilians]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The fall of Saddam which was hoped to bring peace to Iraq has unleashed religious violence against the Christian community in Iraq. Unless special attention is given to their plight by the US and the Iraqi government this ancient people will continue to suffer grievously as they have in the past.
http://www.christiansofiraq.com/
http://www.christiansofiraq.com/christiansindiresituation.html
The Situation of Christians in Iraq is Dire
May 19, 07
Baghdad (CNA) -- The Patriarch of the Ancient Assyrian Church of the East, Mar Addai II, has called on the Prime Minister and the Iraqi parliament to put an end to the tragic situation that Christians in Iraq are enduring due to the constant threats and attacks against them.
"Those who are in positions of responsibility must put an end to the persecution of Christians because all of us, Muslims and Christians, are part of one family, we are children of the same land," the patriarch said.
"The violence against Christians in Iraq, but especially in Baghdad and Mosul, is against the spirit of Islam,' Mar Addai said, adding his voice to that of the other Patriarchs, Mar Emmanuel III Delly of the Chaldean Catholic Church, Mar Dinkha IV of the Assyrian Orthodox Church of the East and Mar Gregotios Yohanna Ibrahim of the Syrian Catholic Church.
"The actions of armed groups are forcing Christians from Baghdad, district by district. After Dora, the violence has become fiercer and has reached the western districts of the capital," the website Baghdadhope reported.
In addition to being subjected to threats, killings, and protection payments, Christians are also being forced to leave their own homes leaving everything behind. The armed militants then force the Christians to pay an "exit fee" of $200 per person and $400 per car, the website explained.
In Dora, Addai II said, "Only the families that agree to give a daughter or sister in marriage to a Muslim can remain, which means that the entire nuclear family will progressively become Muslim." Homes, he said, that are not seized by force are being legally turned over by family members of hostages, who are told that is the only way to see their loved ones released.
"God loves us and protects us and therefore we should not be afraid. He will not leave us alone because we are children of hope, and after the darkness the sun will shine again," Addai II stated.
Analysts worry that the departure of the Christian community from Iraq, which has roots going back to antiquity, could make it more difficult to pacify the country.
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@LWM
[Read the article: Large number of Americans favor violent attacks against civilians]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Someone said that Americans would care more about dead Iraqis if they were Christians. I just pointed out to anyone interested that there indeed ARE a lot of Christian Iraqis and that until we Americans came in and started bombing, they were reasonably well protected and now they're being persecuted.
By overthrowing Saddam, we've actually UNLEASHED the violent extremism that we were claiming to be battling. And for the record. Many Americans don't give a rats ass about typical Iraqis, even if they ARE Christian.
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This is of course the source of the ever popular Friedman Unit
[Read the article: Improvement in Iraq: Trust Joe Klein and his secret sources]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friedman_(unit)
Someone recently compared our relationship to the Iraq war as that to the compulsive gambler who insists that the next roll of the dice will be the one that pulls him out of his slump, or the compulsive drinker who insists that as of tomorrow morning, he's going to get a fresh start and his problems will soon be over.
One can shake ones head and feel pity whan one sees an individual engaging in such self destructive behavior. But when the behavior is being perpetuated by the institutions that are actually responsible for guiding an entire nation, then we are officially in deep shi!^
Won't ANYONE point out that the Emperor is naked?
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FU's
[Read the article: Improvement in Iraq: Trust Joe Klein and his secret sources]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Here's an even more informative link re:FU's
http://www.dkosopedia.com/wiki/Friedman_Unit
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This link from the comment thread at swampland...
[Read the article: Improvement in Iraq: Trust Joe Klein and his secret sources]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]While critical of today's GG column....
http://dcdialogue.blogspot.com/2007/05/rise-of-tribes.html
nevertheless seems to shed some light on the overall debate.
If nothing else, it's yet another sensible sounding voice.
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I suppose if I can accuse the entire nation...
[Read the article: Improvement in Iraq: Trust Joe Klein and his secret sources]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]of behaving like an OCD victim, its not too much of a stretch to assign family gender roles to the political parties. The Dems seem to have the role of the abused spouse down, relenting rather than allowing the children to witness yet another fight.
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I see there's another participant...
[Read the article: Improvement in Iraq: Trust Joe Klein and his secret sources]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]in the ongoing conspiracy to make shooter242 seem reasonable and sane.
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@L at L
[Read the article: Improvement in Iraq: Trust Joe Klein and his secret sources]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]but I wonder of that factor alone explains the very obvious disparity between current public opinion regarding Bush and his war(as far as a large majority is concerned) and that of the corporate opinion-makers
Never underestimate the power of Comedy. I suspect a lot of the change in public opinion is directly trackable to The Daily show, The Colbert Report, SNL and The Onion.
The MSM's obsession with decorum has rendered them completely incapable of getting it, hence the clear disconnect between them and the rest of the nation.
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In case I'm the first to have noticed....
[Read the article: Improvement in Iraq: Trust Joe Klein and his secret sources]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Joe Klein has posted a response:
http://time-blog.com/swampland/2007/05/a_note_on_sources.html
Unsurprisingly, he claims that his critics don't want success in Iraq:
...Why does good news about Iraq, however modest--and this was truly a modest, if intriguing, development--trouble you?
The then, even more bizarrly claims that his "good news" undercuts the White House!
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The American character....
[Read the article: Attacks on civilians, torture and lawless detentions]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I think a large portion of American though is indeed guided by the fact that our history is one of successful conquest by force of arms, and that we have never really had to wrestle with the possibilty of failure let alone experiencing the devastation that accompanies having our homes and the battlefield occupying the same space.
(on a separate question, I'm curious about how attitudes toward civillian casualties eveolved during the American Civil War...in case any history buffs care to add their thoughts)
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GB=OCD
[Read the article: Attacks on civilians, torture and lawless detentions]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I think three days is more than enough time for beating ones head against a wall. Let us please move on.