Readers React: Obama’s approach is the right way to fight Islamic State

To the editor: Unlike his predecessor, John McCain, Mitt Romney and other Republicans, this president gauges the depth of the water before jumping head first into the pool. I prefer a leader who is cautious rather than cavalier on military matters. (“How to ‘take the fight’ to Islamic State,” Editorial, Sept. 3)

We are now realizing the most severe collateral damage of our invasion of Iraq, which disrupted the balance of power in the region.

In recent months, President Obama’s approval rating has fallen, but if you used a weighted guideline approach to assess the president’s overall performance and handling of foreign affairs, historians will treat him more kindly than his critics.

Paul Shubunka, Santa Clarita

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To the editor: This editorial quotes Obama as saying he will “degrade and destroy” Islamic State. What you do not mention is that minutes later he contradicted himself by saying he wanted to reduce the group’s effectiveness to the point where it was a “manageable problem.”

These are two entirely different things. Rather than a responsible demonstration of his “careful deliberation,” as you say, this incoherence on the part of the president serves to elucidate his comment the week before that he has no strategy.

Robert Chapman, Downey

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To the editor: As I read and continue rereading the title of this editorial, I wonder how many editorials entitled “How to punish Nazi Germany” were written and published in the 1930s?

If any lesson was learned from the Nazi era, it is that punishment should not be the primary goal of the punisher. Self-preservation should be the primary goal.

I hope that American self-preservation will govern the strategy and actions of the American president.

Marc Jacobson, Los Angeles

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