Dresden’s toll in WWII bombing

A quick note to Eric Lucas on “A Spiritual Journey,” [Dec. 23].

While I appreciate your obviously heartfelt if somewhat fuzzy and lightweight ponderings on forgiveness and spiritualism, I feel compelled to point out an aspect of the atrocities you refer to in your article that is often overlooked by U.S. and British writers detailing the events of Feb. 13 and 14, 1945. What happened in Dresden, Germany, was a war crime. Pure and simple. About 600 people died in Coventry, England. As many as 100,000 civilians or more may have perished in the firebombing of Dresden.

If we are to truly learn from our collective past and forgive, an accurate retelling of history must take into account all crimes committed during war.

Marc Helwig

Sherman Oaks