Al Qaeda Terrorists Strike in Saudi Arabia

Re “Al Qaeda May Be Back, and Stronger,” May 14: Al Qaeda strikes again. Osama bin Laden is still at large. Saddam Hussein is nowhere to be found. No weapons of mass destruction have been discovered in Iraq, which further fuels anti-American rage around the world. Afghanistan and Iraq are cesspools of anarchy and radicalism.

The anthrax terrorist has evaded the Bush dragnet. Our domestic economy is a disaster. We live in fear of “orange” alerts. Environmental protections have evaporated and civil liberties have been seriously eroded. Tell me, what are the compelling reasons one should consider in voting to return President Bush to office next year?

Dan Freedland

Rolling Hills Estates

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Re “U.S. Fears ‘Wave of Attacks,’ ” May 14: So Bush has promised that the Saudi attackers will know the meaning of “American justice.” Can you picture Bin Laden, Mullah Mohammed Omar, Hussein and his kids just shaking in their boots?

Chad Smith

Newbury Park

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Of course Al Qaeda will be back; it is the group responsible for 9/11 and most of the bombing now going on. Our “cleaning out” Afghanistan, and now Iraq, did nothing to destroy the prime terrorist group in the world; I guess our Defense and State departments thought our display of might would scare them off. Al Qaeda employs guerrilla-type strikes, and traditional military hammer blows will not do the job.

We need to truly win over the Muslim world with a Marshall Plan type of assistance and reach the point where the average, hard-working Middle Easterner himself won’t tolerate Al Qaeda’s interference. Only then will terrorism begin to decline. It’s your call, President Bush.

Tom Reinberger

Glendora

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I must have missed the part where our inept leader waged his own personal war that cost countless American lives. From reading the letters to The Times, one would think that’s what happened. What I recall happening is that Bush sent our troops over, they knocked out Hussein and his ilk and, while some stay to restore peace, a big ol’ ship of those troops just came home.

Kevin Weir

Monrovia

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“Saudi Arabia Probably Won’t Reform Soon” (letter, May 10) is beyond serious dispute; however, a fair assessment of the state of the kingdom should include the following, at a minimum.

Industry: new industrial cities at Jubail on the Gulf and Yanbu on the Red Sea. The gas program: recovery of the gas that was formerly flared (burned), the sulfur removed and the gas used for raw material for petrochemical production. The kingdom has spent at least $400 billion in the last 20 years on housing, highways, seawater desalination, airports, power generation, communications and the infrastructure necessary to support a modern society.

The Saudis know that they must rein in fundamentalists.

C.T. Burkner

Pasadena