Letters on wise leaders, feel-good ideology, church and state, Neighbors section

Sometimes wise to choose different path

Right-wingers are fond of accusing President Obama of leading from behind when it comes to terrorism in the Middle East. But what exactly are these conservatives saying? Apparently they want everyone to believe that ISIS has had success only because the president refused to listen to the military.

During the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, the same could have been said about President Kennedy and his refusal to immediately invade Cuba, which is what every one of his generals wanted. We now know that had Kennedy heeded their advice, thermonuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union would have occurred, because the Russians were prepared to fire on a U.S. landing fleet with nuclear-tipped missiles.

Though neither Kennedy nor his generals understood this threat at the time, the president wisely chose a different path and the crisis was resolved peaceably.

Perhaps Americans should give their current president the benefit of a doubt and stop listening to political rhetoric coming from those who only want us to rush into another costly war in the Middle East.

This coming November, America will pick a new leader. Let us hope that we pick a leader as wise as Kennedy.

Feel-good ideology

The writer of “In the end, it will be fear that destroys us” (Dec. 10 Letters to the Editor) insists that it is our fear of terrorism, not terrorism itself, that is the problem.

I doubt that such a feel-good ideology would be of much comfort to the 14 families in San Bernardino who recently lost loved ones at the hands of a trusted Muslim co-worker. And try telling that to the 130 grieving families in Paris.

When the writer stated that “fear is the enemy,” he insinuated the solution. Get it? If all of us would just purge ourselves of fear, we could then expect radical Islamists, who are dedicated to killing infidels, to convert themselves into peace-loving human beings “seeking to find the common ground of justice, kindness and humility for all.”

I must confess that I have some inherent apprehension. If it, somehow, innocently places others at risk, I sincerely apologize.

Church, state history

I have read comments recently about how the Founding Fathers set up this country on the idea of separation of church and state. As co-author Larry Schweikart says in “A Patriot’s History of the United States”: “This whole notion that America has a separation of church and state just defies logic. If you look at the Mayflower Compact and the Massachusetts Bay colony, in all of these colonies, you had to be a church member before you could have stock in the colony. And you had to have stock in the colony before you could vote. So your church membership decided whether or not you were a citizen.”

Schweikart goes on to describe how the first presidents included God and support of public funding of preachers in their speeches and proclamations.

I totally disagree with the current trend of removal of all religious symbols from our public courthouses and state and federal buildings.

Love Neighbors

I love getting my newspaper on Wednesday because it includes the Neighbors section. The editor (Barry Owens) is a master of writing and has a superb way of jolting my memory or cutting through all the chaos of the world and finding a slightly comical perspective for us to enjoy. Plus, the Neighbors comic section includes “Peanuts,” the best comic strip ever written. “Peanuts” should be a part of The Eagle’s everyday comic section.

This story was originally published January 8, 2016 at 6:05 PM with the headline "Letters on wise leaders, feel-good ideology, church and state, Neighbors section."