Terrorism War’s Strange Bedfellows

President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair are now “allied” with ex-KGB/Stasi operative Russian President Vladmir Putin in a war against “terrorism”? Hmm. Let’s see now.

Is this the same Putin whose genocidal campaign in Chechnya included the utter destruction of a whole city (Grozny), not just several buildings, as tragic and criminal as that was? While he has continued his criminal campaign of unprecedented terror against the Chechens he has faced only token (doublespeak) opposition from his now newfound allies, Bush, Blair, the EU, etc. And just like them, he too has been faithful to his “no negotiations” mantra in his bloody campaign. Does anybody else see the crazy (il)logic here?

Saif Hussain

Woodland Hills

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Re “Make the Case Against Bin Laden,” by Alan Dershowitz, Commentary, Oct. 4: In assessing the appropriate level of legal proof required to proceed against Osama bin Laden, one is reminded of Cold War Secretary of State Dean Acheson’s famous dictum that, for governments, “sometimes it is necessary to make things clearer than the truth.”

David R. Ginsburg

Los Angeles

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Re “If This Is Islam, We Must Denounce It,” Commentary, Oct. 4: With his thesaurus-numbing vocabulary, William F. Buckley Jr. has attempted to pass himself off to the public as the voice of erudite and reasonable conservativism for decades. His diatribe against Islam, thinly disguised as a call for Islamic orthodox ascendancy, reveals him for what he is--a vicious bigot in an expensive suit.

Samuel Scheibler

Claremont

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As a liberal Democrat I have frequently been at odds with Buckley, but not about Islam.

I rejoice that someone finally had the guts to stop the nonsense of preaching tolerance for the intolerable. The worldwide evidence that Islam is inimical to civilized behavior and provides a broad base of support for terrorism is (or certainly should be by now) overwhelming. The question we should all be asking is: If Islam were the peace-loving religion that its defenders claim and the terrorists are an isolated deviant minority, then why hasn’t the “peace-loving” Islamic majority cleaned its own house? The answer of course lies in the rubble of the World Trade Center--and the widespread joy greeting this event throughout the Muslim world.

And the reasons offered for Arab hate of the U.S.--our support of Israel, troops in Saudi Arabia, sanctions against Arab states, etc.--are both pathetic and absurd because all of these “anti-Arab” U.S. activities are reactions to Arab war/hate/terror-mongering. Grow up, America.

Hudson T. Patten

West Hills

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Re “Leave the Afghans Better Off,” editorial, Oct. 3: Never mind the Northern Alliance, former King Mohammed Zahir Shah or rebel Talibans. Let’s emancipate all the Afghan women and support their creating a new order in their country. Surely they would do a better job for peace. Why hasn’t anyone suggested this?

Marilyn Joyce Provisor

Signal Hill