United States Would Be Wrong to Impose a Puppet Government

Thank God for freedom of the press! Except for The Times we’d never know that the same neoconservative gang -- Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, influential strategist Richard Perle, Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and others -- that talked President Bush into this ultimately disastrous war is now trying to talk him into an equally disastrous peace (“White House Divided Over Reconstruction,” April 2). As this group makes plans to limit the role of the United Nations in governing postwar Iraq and instead places a questionable, American-controlled puppet (Ahmed Chalabi) in charge, they will see that the reconstruction, too, does not go as planned.

Maralys Wills

Santa Ana

*

I am astounded that President Bush can look directly into the camera and state that this war is about “liberating” the people of Iraq, and then work to set up a puppet government using a Cheney crony.

I’m even more astounded that so many Americans seem to be buying this story. This imperialistic war is a stain on the American flag.

Richard Robertson

Costa Mesa

*

Silly me. When President Bush said our war against Saddam Hussein would bring democracy to Iraq, I thought he was talking about having the Iraqi people pick their government, but I had it all wrong. It’s the Pentagon that is selecting the Iraqi “democratic” government -- as we speak. I guess the president didn’t want to burden the Iraqis with that task. They can chalk it up as one more favor that our president is doing for them.

Ray McKown

Los Angeles

*

It is hard to really focus on postwar Iraq when so much danger yet exists in battles to be fought in Baghdad and beyond. However, in political circles there is already quite the discussion regarding how Iraq should be ruled and rebuilt. Let us not make the same mistake as in going into Iraq unilaterally.

We need to step back from our current position and let Iraqis and the U.N. manage the stabilization of Iraq -- and the rest of the Middle East that has been upset by this confrontation. Let there be more chance for peace out of this war rather than fuel for an endless stream of terrorism and further wars.

Diana Browne

Los Angeles