Letters to the Editor - I saw ‘em June 10 2004

I take exception to Ken Edelstein’s assertion (News & Views, “Gee whiz,” June 3) that White House warnings about the Iraqi threat “flew in the face of the firm facts available just beneath the surface.” Being as I had no trouble seeing them, I beg someone to tell me what surface they were beneath.

-- Arland Miller, Lawrenceville


br>?More to be written
Many thanks to Creative Loafing for assigning reporter Ben Diamond and publishing the latest missive on prevarication station Kennesaw State University (News & Views, “Betty and the ‘Bitch,’” June 3).

Why would the first woman president of a Georgia university openly support a misogynist at the expense of a woman? The chairman of the Michael J. Coles College of Business-Department of Management and Entrepreneurship, Kamal Fatehi, who, after he allegedly sexually harassed his administrative assistant, Elizabeth Boyd, and tried to strong arm her into misappropriating state funds, fired her and proudly wrote it up in his 2001 accomplishments.

Aside from the pain and misery inflicted on the many professors and students at KSU, we the people of the state of Georgia too have been abused, having paid millions of dollars, much of it in legal expenses, defending Betty, et al. Ben Diamond is right. After reading stacks of reports on these cases, this KSU drama is just as gripping as a Grisham novel. Based on what I’ve seen, there are a lot more chapters to be written on Betty’s failure to protect women at the KSU campus.

-- Victoria Pierce, Smyrna


br>?Oust him!
I doubt this letter will ever see print. But hell, it’s 3:07 in the morning, and I’m feeling something that I thought I’d never feel when one mentioned the Bush administration: hope. Hope that the people of this country will rise to the occasion and oust a leader who, as was put so eloquently by essayist Hal Crowther, is the “the worst thing that has happened to this country since the invention of the cathode ray tube,” (News and Views, “Indignant about Bush,” May 27).

But I digress. The point of this letter is to give Mr. Crowther a high five, dap, cheers, congratulations, words of endearment, etc., due to the fact that he’s crafted probably one of the most well thought-out and informative pieces of protest against the Bush regime’s four years of failure to lead a truly safe and democratic country. If one decides to delve further than the local news, or even go beyond reading the new local and national dailies that proliferate newsstands, a person will find that there is no shortage of information highlighting the various abuses and failures of our current administration’s tenure in office. Nowhere, though, have I found such a better formulated and crafted critique on the Bush presidency. Mr. Crowther attacks like a masterful surgeon, going to the root of the problem while using his tools of the trade — a pen, paper and an extensive knowledge of the topic on which he’s speaking — and lays waste to the idyllic vision that others might try to paint of America’s current state.

Thanks, Mr. Crowther, for giving the people a voice of reason.

-- Robert Jeffrey, Atlanta

?Where’s our real leader?
Thank you for publishing the excellent articles about Iraq, especially Hal Crowther’s piece, “Indignant about Bush” (May 27). If every American with an open mind would read these articles, it might help hasten the end of Mr. Bush’s disastrous presidency.

It is clear that our country will be a target for terrorists as long as we are dependent on Mid East oil, and especially now that Bush’s miscues in Iraq have catapulted the U.S. even further into the scopes of 18,000 globally dispersed terrorists. Protecting ourselves at home and abroad obviously is a must.

But more importantly, we need a real leader to mobilize and incent our best thinkers and scientists with a national goal — say by the year 2020 or 2030 — to have developed industrial-strength alternative sources of energy so that we can leave the sand and sludge to those who care about it! Why will no leaders in government make this a national mission, one our very lives may depend on?

No question, it’s a daunting, long-term, expensive challenge. But there are few alternatives that can be discussed. I don’t want my son and his family living under the threat of dirty bombs and biologicals if there is not at least a glimmer of hope for an exit strategy out of the Mid East muck we seem destined to slog through for the next half-century.

-- Greg Pritchett, Atlanta


br>?Giving me voice
I’ve always wanted to know about the struggles of reporters and journalists who actually have a passionate opinion on what they must report (“Indignant about Bush, May 27). With my background, I’m not sure I could write without tears running down my face.

As an Iranian-American girl who has had to grow up among the crazy conservatives in Tennessee, I’ve been accepted less as an American and more as an oddity or a threat in that state; the same goes for my family. They have suffered from myriad hate crimes. As I formed my political views and became more educated, I stepped out of the fog and became angry and resentful toward our government. My own uncle, who is in our Air Force, was recently sent to Iraq, leaving his wife and two children behind.

Professionally, I spent nearly a year counseling Vietnam veterans who have post-traumatic stress disorder. They relive their trauma every day when they watch the news. Their stories haunt me as well.

Thank you for giving voice to my own outrage. Your understanding is a source of relief for me.

-- Negar Fani, Decatur


br>?Don’t let them get away with it
I just finished reading the four articles “Indignant about Iraq” (May 27), and wish to thank you for your contribution. We need more journalism like John Sugg’s to help wake up our country if we are to ever have any hope of living in peace.

There has been a glaring omission in the media that I would like to point out, in hopes of someone bringing this to the public light.

When our troops were recently charged with crimes at the prison and some subsequently already court-martialed, their crimes were described as “alleged,” even though photographs of the crimes have been published throughout the world. I agree that these things should be described in that manner. Such is the way of a criminal justice system.

However, in the case of the alleged crimes of Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden, never have I seen the word “alleged” used. To do that would open up the reality of an invasion being made because of alleged crimes. People have been called monsters and terrorists with no proof or adjectives to show that these accusations are mere allegations. The media has been instrumental in this misinformation, perhaps unconsciously, but, nevertheless, just as damaging as far as persuading public opinion.

Are American citizens the only humans who are entitled to human rights? I know you agree with me, I’m not writing to criticize your views. I only hope I can influence you to shed light on another aspect of these invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan.

Thank you for your excellent efforts to help reach the masses with the truth. Until we can bring about peace, our efforts are all failures. I believe, in time, the truth will bring peace, so don’t let the warmongers get away with the lies they have used to justify their atrocities.

-- Joseph Michael, Stone Mountain