Inbox

  • What Rover Knows
    It is good to know that animals are being recognized as "smarter than we realized" [Aug. 16]. It only took us a gazillion years to figure that out, and we're the "smart" ones?
    Rebecca Stokes,
    Fort Myers, Fla., U.S.

    To leave parrots out of your article is almost more than my companion birds can bear. Irene Pepperberg and Alex the African gray parrot did much to change minds on this topic, but anyone who has these birds realizes they have intelligence and can sense your ups and downs.
    Clarence P. Cameron,
    Madison, Wis., U.S.

    Thank you so much for this article. We are not the only intelligent beings on this earth, and animals should be treated with respect, not just as pets.
    Kelly French,
    Delaware, Ohio, U.S.

    In our agricultural systems, as the article notes, animals deserve better treatment than we currently give them. However, ensuring their welfare is not just about avoiding cruelty. It is about recognizing and meeting their needs in terms of stimulation from their environment, how they form social structures and how they perceive and solve problems. We need to design a system to help them live a fulfilling life.
    Marlene Halverson,
    Northfield, Minn., U.S.

    Battle at Ground Zero
    I have followed the fight over a possible Islamic center near the World Trade Center with mixed emotions [The Moment, Aug. 16]. While it is true that not all Muslims were responsible for 9/11, it is also true that Muslim extremists killed 3,000 innocent people in the name of Allah. If Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf and Daisy Khan were really interested in healing relations among Christians, Jews and Muslims, they should have been sensitive to this fact and proposed a cultural center and place of worship that would represent the faiths of all who died on that day.
    Rosemarie Ratti,
    Springfield, Vt., U.S.

    It is only natural that the families of 9/11 victims would be horrified by the proposed Islamic center. But rather than persecuting U.S. Muslims, should we not work with them toward a stronger relationship? Daisy Khan wants to start the healing. Hopefully she will be able to show Americans a different view of Islam.
    Regina Thornton,
    Pittsburgh

    The vast majority of the opponents of the project do not harbor anti-Islamic sentiments but have the common sense to know that building a mosque so close to Ground Zero would touch a nerve that is still very raw. Build it somewhere else!
    Eric C. Zabicki,
    New York City

    I don't agree with the criticisms of Park51, but if people can't voice them out of fear that doing so will benefit al-Qaeda, wouldn't that truly be the victory for terrorists?
    Ben Garner,
    Tulsa, Okla., U.S.

    Russia's War on Terrorism
    "Russia's Long War" says the Kremlin has "consistently prosecuted the war domestically in ways that seem both brazen and brutal" [Aug. 16]. These are strong words indeed, but which nation confronted with internal uprising would not do likewise? The leaders in Moscow will stick to their agenda as long as there is no other viable option.
    Vei Ze Wu,
    Singapore

    Rethinking Iraq
    Re "Never Again" [Aug. 16]: Joe Klein's excellent summary of our involvement in Iraq has greater credibility because of his mea culpa for his early support of the invasion. We have paid a terrible price for this strategic blunder, while those who seek us harm have grown.
    George Delaney,
    Jupiter, Fla., U.S.

    Klein says "we should never go to war unless we have been attacked or are under direct, immediate threat of attack." Does he suggest that America should never defend its allies if they are attacked?
    Tom Baumann,
    Sydney

    Never say "never again" unless we can look away from atrocities such as the massacre of Tutsi and their sympathizers in Rwanda and the ethnic cleansing in Kosovo. Living in Southeast Asia, I am ever grateful to the U.S. for its involvement in World War II. If it had looked the other way, my parents and their parents might not have survived the brutality of the Japanese occupation.
    Sarah Seah,
    Singapore

    Less Planes, More Gains
    China thinks and plans for the long term ["Engines of Growth," Aug. 16]. The increase in bullet trains is an acknowledgment by the Chinese government that it is not environmentally or economically viable to keep increasing the number of aircraft flights.
    Brian Milne,
    Christchurch, New Zealand