Letters

(2 of 2)

From a cynical point of view, the escalation of terrorism that could result from a war against Iraq might be beneficial for President Bush. It could allow him to once again play the part of the great uniter of the American people against the evil enemy as was the case after Sept. 11--and thus improve his chances for re-election in 2004.
ASBJORN ANDERSEN
Vanloese, Denmark

Question: what do you feed a 500-lb. gorilla? Answer: whatever he wants. That's the simple explanation for why so many Europeans are skeptical about Bush's policy toward Iraq. The only remaining superpower can do whatever it wants. And it will. This time, with Saddam, it is a good and morally justified case, but what comes next? What other dictator will Bush choose to get rid of? The world would be a better place without Saddam. But the U.S. should work with the U.N., get the go-ahead from the Security Council and then give him hell.
DIRK NEGA
Dusseldorf, Germany

Advice to Germany and France: don't wait until you get hit by a chemical warhead from Saddam or al-Qaeda to finally understand the threat. The U.S. and its allies should disarm Iraq now. Since when do terrorists take the trouble to warn us about their attacks?
GLEN G. OCANA
Denver

You don't have to go to Europe to find people who consider Bush terrifying. Just come to New York City, where a substantial number of people feel the same way and are just as frightened as the Europeans are. Perhaps that's because a terrorist attack in retaliation for an Iraq invasion would probably take place here in New York City and not in those parts of the country where people enjoy pretending to be cowboys or eagerly await Armageddon.
LAUREN ESPOSITO
New York City

The whining and America bashing by Europeans are similar to what we saw in the '80s. They called Ronald Reagan a cowboy too. His "cowboy" leadership resulted in a Europe free from the threat of communism. Once again, another cowboy President will save Europeans from their inaction and lack of will.
GEORGE MACCONNELL
Atlanta

Thank god, Germany and France, which see no justification now for military action, are the "old Europe." They know the price of war.
PHILIPPE MISCHLER
Paris

Of Fairness and Taxes

In the article "The Really Unfair Tax" [Nation, Feb. 3], you noted that wages withheld for Social Security may be taxed twice or even three times for retirees whose income exceeds a certain level. Our tax code would be a lot fairer and of more benefit to the Social Security system if all of us, the rich included, paid taxes on our entire income.
CAROL L. HOWELL
Bethany Beach, Del.

If we return $100 to 1,000 taxpayers, perhaps each would buy a DVD player, a digital camera or a pair of sneakers, most of which are made outside the country, adding to the trade deficit. But if we return $100,000 to one person, perhaps he would expand his medical-supply company and add jobs to the local economy.
ALEX RAFIE
Palo Alto, Calif.

The real injustice of Social Security withholding is not that the money might end up being taxed three times but that wage earners are forced by law to participate in the plan. To remedy this injustice, let's make participation voluntary. For those who wish to opt out, allow them to recover and transfer to IRAs all their Social Security and health-care tax payments so that they can provide for their own retirement.
STEPHEN DOURSON
Gratis, Ohio

Going Right on the Left Coast

That the conservative student magazine the California Patriot has flourished at the famously liberal University of California, Berkeley, should come as no surprise to the school's alumni [ON THE CAMPUS, Feb. 3]. For years, both in and out of the classroom, students have learned that dissent is at the core of what the Founding Fathers practiced and envisioned for this nation. Sadly, the publication's editors have failed to understand that patriotism knows no political ideology or party and that its tenets go far beyond flying an American flag.
JAMES DEVITT
Larchmont, N.Y.