EXPERTS ON IRAQ
Wow! Judging from the responses to Mary Anna Towler’s December 7 editorial in support of pulling our
forces out of Iraq, you’d think the idea was paramount to treason (The Mail, December
21).
Lately, everybody seems to be an expert on Iraq.
It is not the place for officers in the field to question the motives of the
civilian leadership that put them there. They have a job to do, and I believe
that the vast majority of them do it well. But retired generals are damn well
free to say what they please. A few might have an “ax to grind” but I’m sure
they know a little something more about the reality of Iraq than armchair
generals.
As far as some of the “facts” citied in Al-Ubaidi’s letter week, a few seem to defy common sense on
face value — particularly “98 percent of the population hates the Baathists.” If that’s the case, why the hell couldn’t they
take down Saddam themselves? Let’s face it , the animosity between the Sunnis,
Shiites, and Kurds may not go away as quickly as we’d like it. And as if other
Muslim democracies like Turkey and Indonesia were free of such problems. Go ask
an Armenian, a Turkish Kurd, or someone from East Timor.
And didn’t Iran
just elect a president who’s an avowed racist?
Why does such position as bringing our soldiers home make
one a defeatist? Haven’t we already achieved “victory” by toppling and
capturing Saddam? Wasn’t “mission accomplished” two years ago?
The truth is, the Bush administration will continue to
exploit our armed forces as long as Congress lets it (regardless of whether
they are needed here, like the National Guard was needed after Katrina).
They’ll just keep changing the definition of “victory” and keep blaming us
liberals for “bringing down morale” — like our soldiers’ give one shit about
all this geo-political postulating of how bad the Iraqis want democracy.
If Bush were honest, he’d just come out and say that the US
military presence will be permanent so we can be the primary recipients of Iraq’s
oil. If that is worth the price of more American lives, then there is more than
enough shame to go around.
Don Blair, Rochester
LOVING MANGA
Thank you for your informative “Manga Invasion” cover
story (December 28). It’s refreshing to see coverage of manga and anime that
speaks to fans as well as those who might be wondering what all the fuss is
about.
I would like to point out another angle to manga’s
popularity: many fans also love to draw (and write) their own manga. As the
instructor of the “Manga and More” class for teens at the MemorialArtGallery’s
Creative Workshop, I have the pleasure of sharing in young artists’ enthusiasm
for Japanese comic art. Despite being a lifelong comics fan, I also was drawn
to manga as I noted young students’ eager emulation of the various styles of
the genre.
Clearly, manga both entertains and inspires creative fans of all ages.
Warren Mianecke, University AvenueRochester
PORT DREAMING
Yes, indeed, the waterfront at Charlotte
needs some work (“The Art of the Possible,” December 28). An “observation
deck” is a great idea and could be similar to the MillenniumTower along the Lake
Erie shore in Erie, Pennsylvania,
or the Panasonic and Minolta towers in Niagara Falls,
Ontario. Such a tower could offer
breathtaking views of LakeOntario,
IrondequoitBay,
downtown, the Upper and LowerFalls,
and BraddockBay.
As for Lake Avenue
being that area’s “only real land artery” to downtown and the port
area being quite “a haul” from downtown: this is why we need the light rail
lines planned by both the Rochester Rail Transit Committee and the Rochester
Trolley and Rail Corporation. These would include lines between downtown and Charlotte
and Summerville-Pattonwood, as well as a line between those lakefront areas and
Seabreeze, using a restored Hojack swing bridge.
Passengers on the line between the lakefront and downtown
could stop at the Lyell Avenue
area near PaeTecPark,
where exciting things are happening thanks to Mitch Rowe and other developers.
The rail lines could also revive and make exciting changes to HighFalls, the Broad
Street corridor, and MidtownPlaza, especially if there are
tourists traveling to and from the ferry.
I hope that the ferry will succeed. If not, perhaps there
will be passenger ships using the terminal to travel between our port and
various Canadian cities and to Youngstown,
NiagaraCounty,
and Oswego. Failing that, if the
terminal shuts down, the building could become a Coast Guard or Merchant Marine
museum, with their ships moored in the river, or it could become a theater.
Kevin F. Yost, Middle Road, Henrietta
WRITING TO CITY
We welcome and encourage readers’ letters for publication.
Send them to: themail@rochester-citynews.com or The Mail, City Newspaper, 250
North Goodman Street, Rochester14607.
Our guidelines: We don’t publish anonymous letters — and
we ask that you include your street name and city/town/village. We don’t
publish letters that have been sent to other media — and we don’t publish form letters generated by activist groups. While
we don’t restrict length, letters of under 350 words
have a greater chance of being published. We do edit letters for clarity and
brevity. And in general we don’t publish letters (or longer “op-ed” pieces)
from the same writer more often than about once every two months.
This article appears in Jan 11-17, 2006.
