Missing in Action: a U.S. Policy on Iraq

David Frum complains that Americans are pessimistic about Iraq because President Bush has not effectively explained U.S. policy (Opinion, July 3). In other words, we could ignore the mounting death toll, the potential for civil war there and the billions of U.S. tax dollars spent on failed projects if only the administration could better express what the policy is.

What bothers most Americans about Iraq is the realization that we haven’t heard much truth from our government since the preemptive strike. And if the Bush team has formed an Iraq policy since the infamous “mission accomplished” speech, it should let us know what it is.

Charles Coleman Jr.

Pacoima

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Frum writes that during the Clinton years “the explanations were always better than the policies” -- a quip he attributes to Henry Kissinger. May I say that the same observation can be made of Kissinger himself during his Vietnam years? Of Bush’s war in Iraq, I can only say that both the policies and explanations are sadly lacking.

Thomas Dobrzeniecki

Costa Mesa

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Re “Please Help Us Help You -- If Allah Is Willing,” Opinion, July 3: Marine Maj. Beau Higgins seems to have struck a familiar note in the concept of invading another country without understanding its philosophy and culture. My concern is where the responsibility lies. Is it really the responsibility of the military? Why is it not the responsibility of our leaders to try to understand the character and differences of the people being invaded before we send our troops to fight and die?

Higgins is trying to delegate both the philosophical understanding and the fighting to the same group, which seems to be asking the impossible. There is concern that a more specific timeframe for withdrawal would strengthen the position of the insurgents; and yet, in the absence of one, the rebels seem to be gaining strength daily. The sooner our leaders understand the vast differences between our cultures, the sooner they will orchestrate an exit and let the Iraqis rebuild their lives as they see fit.

Clifford W. Colwell Jr.

La Jolla, Calif.