Kurdish Struggle

* In “U.S. Interest Lies With Oil, Not Kurds in Iraq” (editorial, Sept. 10), you succinctly define the U.S. policymakers as merchants of oil.

I am not surprised that the Kurdish question has again become a “negotiable” issue both from within and without. While the West is disclaiming any moral obligations under the pretext of Kurdish civil war, the sycophant Masoud Barzani marches on under the protection of the archenemy of the Kurds. This is only a brief yet painful moment in history, but only those who defend the truth, rather than their interests, will be the moral victors of tomorrow. Everyone else will be accused of burying the Kurdish aspiration in an unmarked grave.

SHAPOUL HAZHAR

Woodland Hills

* President Bill Clinton’s attack on Iraq violated the right of a sovereign nation to protect itself from all enemies, foreign and domestic. The Kurdish people are being ruthlessly oppressed by Hussein. The U.N. and the rest of the world has condemned this oppression. However, the Kurds live within the borders of Iraq and unfortunately this makes it a domestic issue. If the Iranians are aiding Kurdish factions, then Hussein has every right to defend his country against this outside threat.

There are many other peoples in the world who are oppressed as ruthlessly as the Kurds. Why doesn’t Clinton go to their rescue? The U.N. resolutions did not give Clinton a mandate to attack Iraq under these circumstances. Most of the world condemned Clinton for this attack. Not since Lyndon Johnson and the Vietnam War has military power been used to this extent in order to enhance and promote one’s political standing. We need a real commander in chief, not the self-serving, character-lacking politician presently occupying the White House.

JOHN McCAMMON

Ridgecrest

* Regarding Republican criticisms of the Clinton administration’s handling of Iraq, could we have forgotten--or are they counting on us forgetting--that it was they who armed Saddam in the first place, and that it was their great P.R. Gen. Colin Powell who left him in power, lest the casualties involved in toppling Saddam endanger the reelection chances of his boss George (“Out of the Loop”) Bush?

JEREMY GILBERT-ROLFE