The Toll of War
Linking President Truman and the Korean War with President Bush and Iraq in "Sharing a Hug, Saying Goodbye, and Praying" [February 12] was appropriate. After the Chinese had driven United Nations forces back into South Korea, a January 1951 Gallup Poll showed "that 49 percent of Americans felt sending troops to Korea was a mistake, and 66 percent said the United States should abandon the peninsula," according to Battle for Korea: A History of the Korean Conflict. Truman ignored the poll, and South Korea is now a successful democracy and strong ally. As a veteran of the Korean and Vietnam wars, I have seen the results of strong and weak presidential leadership. President Bush shows the courage and leadership a faltering public and Congress need.
BRIG. GEN. PHILIP L. BOLT USA (RET.)
West Union, S.C.
"Sharing a Hug" caused me to reread selected passages related to the war in Vietnam from Randall B. Woods's LBJ-Architect of American Ambition. Not unlike Vietnam, the policy in Iraq is doomed to failure and for the same reasons: the wrong war, the wrong place, the wrong time, and with the wrong enemy. As a World War II vet, must I live through another failed policy? Putting more troops in harm's way is not the way to go!
JOSEPH G. BURCHER
Haddonfield, N.J.
"Sharing a Hug" caused me to reread selected passages related to the war in Vietnam from Randall B. Woods's LBJ-Architect of American Ambition. Not unlike Vietnam, the policy in Iraq is doomed to failure and for the same reasons: the wrong war, the wrong place, the wrong time, and with the wrong enemy. As a World War II vet, must I live through another failed policy? Putting more troops in harm's way is not the way to go!
JOSEPH G. BURCHER
Haddonfield, N.J.
The picture accompanying "Sharing a Hug, Saying Goodbye, and Praying" says it all. Recently, in his final column for the Philadelphia Inquirer, John Grogan had a terrific article called "Coming Home-and Moving On." It was about a soldier returning from Iraq to Fort Benning, Ga., and his gal meeting him. The two articles brought tears of joy and sorrow to my eyes. When is this cruel war ever going to cease?
SHIRLEY BAUMGARDNER
Harrisburg, Pa.
Election Directions
Michael Barone's "Best Answer" to our deplorable presidential primary system is to "muddle through" ["Presidential Pickings," January 29-February 5]. Ever since I was old enough to vote in primaries, I have wondered why New Hampshire and Iowa get to begin to choose our party candidate for president. Currently, by the time we vote in Texas, the field is narrowed to so few that voting is meaningless. Why not have one day of primary elections nationwide? The campaign costs and time involved would be much less, and voters could vote for every candidate. In the West, we may even study the candidates and issues if we are assured that we can vote for one of those early runners.
LORETTA BEDFORD
San Augustine, Texas
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