Letters

(2 of 3)

A Heroic Rescue

I believe the real hero in the ordeal of POW Jessica Lynch [WITH THE TROOPS, April 14] is Mohammed, the Iraqi lawyer who walked approximately 36 miles over two days to bring information to the Marines about a young woman being held in a hospital. Of course, Lynch underwent a horrendous experience; I cannot imagine the terror that went through that young woman's mind. Labeling her a hero, however, is a misuse of the word. The Iraqi lawyer who put his life on the line to make the rescue possible is unquestionably the true hero in this terrible saga. Lynch was the unfortunate victim of war's cruelty while serving as a soldier.
JANICE M. CURRIE
Lancaster, Pa.

Triumph's Toll

Your photo essay on the devastation in Iraq included a very powerful picture of an elderly man with arms outstretched, bewailing the destruction of his home by bombing [IMAGES OF WAR, April 14]. You titled the photo "The Price of Peace." It looks as if you've joined other news purveyors in buying into the Bush Administration's claim that war inevitably results in peace. What this picture shows is, plain and simple, the agonizing price of war. Whether peace will follow is a question only the foolish would try to answer now.
MARIAN R. PLACE
Durham, N.C.

Thank you for the courageous decision to run the photo of the Iraqi boy who lost both arms and was severely burned during the fighting. It was a stunning illustration of the awful price civilians pay in war. Now that the Iraqi people have been liberated, the coalition and the U.N. must make it a top priority to treat and rehabilitate victims like that boy. There should be no limit on the resources and medical personnel we provide to help the Iraqi medical community restore the lives of the wounded.
ROBERT A. WISCHMEYER
Ann Arbor, Mich.

It doesn't take dozens of horrifying pictures to illustrate the madness of war. It takes only one. The picture of the badly burned boy with no arms reduced me to tears. I pray the good that may come out of this war will far outweigh the horrors visited on some innocent Iraqi civilians. It will take a lot of good to make up for the pain of this boy. Americans need to see such images alongside those of jubilant Iraqi men beating pictures of Saddam with their shoes.
JENNIFER REICHERT
San Diego

Of Pundits and Patriotism

In his article about the news coverage of the war [CRITIC'S NOTEBOOK, April 14], James Poniewozik questioned whether one should give up journalistic independence in the name of liberty. Journalistic independence doesn't exist without liberty. When liberty is in jeopardy, so is freedom of the press. Journalistic bias exists in varying degrees, no matter what. But journalists need to have perspective on which country allows them to freely report the news in the first place.
AARON LLOYD ROLLINS
Ventura, Calif.

Poniewozik blasted the journalists and on-air personalities who dared express their approval for our nation's efforts in Iraq. He discussed bias to make his point. I find it refreshing for a news person to admit there is bias in the media. Unlike the majority of reporters, the "biased" individuals Poniewozik talks about often espouse the views of the vast majority of loyal Americans. When did it become a bad thing to believe in your country? Or to want to help those who are oppressed by inhumane regimes?
STEVEN HAWKINS
Dallas

Telling It Like It Is

I applaud TIME for printing the words of Marine Lieut. Colonel Bryan McCoy as his battalion easily routed Iraqi fighters outside the town of Kut [WITH THE TROOPS, April 14]. McCoy said, "Let's quit pussyfooting and call it what it is. It's murder, it's slaughter, it's clubbing baby harp seals." Some may believe the antiwar protests should have stopped once the fighting started, for fear of demoralizing American troops, but I am more concerned about the morale of those who will spend the rest of their lives dealing with the horrors of war. The suffering on both sides will continue long after the last shot is fired. Thanks to McCoy for telling it like it is.
JILL EICKHOFF BASHORE
Durham, N.C.

Blurring the Distinctions

Walter Kirn's piece about how things get complicated once the fighting actually begins brought us down into the dust where the real war is taking place [ESSAY, April 14]. Kirn uncovered the circumstances for what they are. War is an awful, terrible thing. Yet his article gives me reason to hope that when all is said and done, the lines will be redrawn, except this time there will be no "they"--the Iraqis and the Americans only "us."
CHRISTINA HILDRETH
Novi, Mich.