U.S. Troops in Somalia
In his Column Left (Dec. 8) Alexander Cockburn reveals once again that he is out of touch with the real world.
He seems intent on persuading us that conditions in Somalia are not as bad as newspaper reports and television images would have us believe. Indeed he states “not every Somali is starving.” Most published reports describe 300,000 deaths from starvation out of a population of 7 million. To me this is a horrendous number.
Cockburn would have preferred continuing negotiations with “all elements of Somali society” rather than military intervention for the purpose of distributing food.
I find it fascinating that he who has voiced great concern for Salvadoran and Palestinian suffering can muster so little compassion for the people of Somalia. To Cockburn it appears that suffering can have meaning only when it can be described in liberation or class-struggle terms.
MICHAEL WEISS
Woodland Hills
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
