Gen. Tommy Franks Defeats the Taliban

It is incomprehensible to me that Gen. Tommy Franks, commanding officer of our Afghanistan campaign, spends most of his time in luxurious quarters in Florida while Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld is touring Afghanistan and the enemy sneaks off into the night (“Brawn in Afghanistan, Brainpower in Florida,” Dec. 17).

Perhaps we might have caught at least one Taliban or Al Qaeda leader if we had a hands-on leadership actually located in the battleground area. What a concept! And the tiny U.S. presence on the ground practically guaranteed failure.

It appears that the enemy was able to buy its way out of the war zone, probably laughing all the way to Pakistan or Iran. Incompetence all around, although Rumsfeld deserves an A for effort.

Robert W. Lovell

Huntington Beach

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For two months now we’ve been hearing the arrogant challenges of Osama bin Laden and Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar, and how they’re waiting for the U.S. soldiers so they can unleash the forces of Allah as they did against the Soviets.

Well, look what happened when push came to shove. They both took off under the cover of night like a pair of wounded rodents with their tails between their legs, leaving the rest of the pack to be killed or captured.

Bin Laden and Omar are not only self-delusional mass murderers, they are also blatant cowards who have no respect for their own fighters.

If these two Islamic “heroes” are whom the so-called Arab street looks up to, we should have no concern about our ultimate victory over the terrorism of radical Muslim fundamentalists. We can readily see who really is the paper tiger in this war.

Like the Egyptians who abandoned their tanks and shoes and ran home in the ’67 war against Israel, and the vaunted Iraqi army that surrendered in droves in the Gulf War, the Al Qaeda and Taliban leaders showed their true colors when pitted against a real enemy.

Leonard Tachner

Irvine

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David Corn, an editor at the Nation, states that the U.S. should pay compensation for the Afghan citizens killed by the United States (“The Way to Make Amends,” Opinion, Dec. 16). It is one of the unfortunate results of war that innocent people are killed because of the machinations of their leaders.

It is only fair that we pay compensation to the Afghans when Bin Laden pays compensation for the victims of the World Trade Center.

Gary A. Robb

Los Angeles

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It is very disturbing and frustrating that many Arabs still try to deny Al Qaeda’s responsibility for this wanton attack after the release of the Bin Laden video admitting that he and his cohorts planned and committed the Sept. 11 atrocity against the United States (“Many Watch, but Opinions Mostly Unchanged,” Dec. 15).

This attempt at denial is a slap in the face of America in general and in the face of the victims’ families in particular. It makes me understand that the country is dealing with people who have a completely different culture and belief system than most Americans. For them, life, even that of their own comrades and compatriots, has very little value.

Harold Taback

Pomona