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Rather than being seen as a sign of weakness, might not a President's public acknowledgment of those who died in battle inspire the nation and reassure us that the White House has not lost touch with the reality of the loss of life? TERESA BROOKS New York City
CREATING NEW ENEMIES
Your article "Losing Hearts And Minds" showed that Iraqis have deep grievances against the U.S. [Dec. 8]. Bush's policies have turned Iraqis, Muslims and others who were once only moderately opposed to the U.S. into an ever growing pool of dedicated enemies. It is hard to imagine that groups promising eternal glory to suicide bombers would greet U.S. troops as saviors, but evidently many of the Administration's policymakers believed this is what would happen in Iraq. STEVE ZOLOTOW Las Vegas
The Bush Administration must realize that anti-American sentiment will only increase as long as thousands of suspected terrorists are detained, innocent civilians are killed and Iraq's economy is at a standstill. Although a premature departure from Iraq would clearly be a mistake, prolonging the occupation will only cause conditions there to deteriorate. It is ironic that human rights and terrorism, two of Bush's strongest arguments for regime change in Iraq, have worsened or improved only slightly since the U.S. invaded. JONATHAN N. NICHOLS Middlebury, Vt.
You reported that U.S. soldiers flattened the house and apricot trees of Laith Klabos and his family, near Tikrit. The photo of him standing in the ruins of his demolished home reminded me of pictures showing the treatment of Palestinians by the Israeli army. Are we following these tactics? STEVE C. KEMIJI Sacramento, Calif.
GOING FOR BROKE
There are at least two ways to explain the Bush Administration's attitude toward our ballooning federal budget deficit. Perhaps the President doesn't care and is willing for the country to suffer huge deficits as long as he gets what he wants--re-election and selective tax advantages. Or maybe he is operating with inadequate knowledge. The President has said he doesn't read newspapers, so his access to information must be limited. In preparing for the war in Iraq, the Bush team purposefully ignored any views that conflicted with its own. In discussing the federal deficit, does President Bush ever sit down face to face with strong proponents of fiscal restraint? Or is this President isolated? STANLEY GOODMAN Wyckoff, N.J.
Having lived through the horrors of the Great Depression of the 1930s, I am distressed to see the Administration sowing the seeds for another one with reckless policies. Most people who will vote in next year's election did not experience the Depression, but let us hope they will have the wisdom to elect officials who will return fiscal sanity to Washington. Depressions don't discriminate between Republicans and Democrats. RALPH CRAIG Amherst, Mass.
AERIAL ADVENTURES