LETTERS, WE WRITE LETTERS: THE RIGHT POLICY TO HANDLE TERRORISM
Another of my letters was published in the
Santa Cruz Sentinel today. This one responded to the
Sentinel's editorial on the findings of the
9-11 Commission. Here's the text, as published:
Focus on foreign policy
Both the 9/11 commission report and a recent Sentinel editorial seem focused on restructuring government to combat terrorism. Will restructuring save money, eliminate regulation, preserve our freedoms, or de-motivate terrorists? Did anyone ask whether foreign policy changes might leave us safer from terrorist attack without diminishing our liberty?
We’ll never know whether the "humble" foreign policy promised by candidate Bush in 2000 would have prevented the 9/11 attacks, as President Bush never really delivered before 9/11 brought war. Sen. Kerry seems fine with the wars on Iraq and terror, as long as he’s in charge.
Michael Badnarik, Libertarian for president, supports a strong national defense and effective, just retaliation toward anyone who, however motivated, attacks us. Unlike his opponents, Badnarik will pursue a sensible, non-interventionist foreign policy that minimizes the motivations for anti-U.S. terrorism. Badnarik’s priority is defending America, at lower cost and risk than currently policy allows.
JAMES MERRITT
Santa Cruz
Update (200408011005): I submitted this letter via email; in the version I sent, the last sentence ends with, "lower cost and risk than current policy allows." I wonder how they introduce errors like that during the newspaper production process. I wouldn't expect the tacking-on of a gratuitous suffix to occur, if they simply cut-n-pasted from the email into whatever system they use to compose pages. Did they print out my email and re-key it by hand? Did they think I meant to say "at lower cost and risk than policy currently allows," rather than "at lower cost and risk than the current policy allows"? It's a puzzlement.
Another update (200408011025): I passed along the letter text, as published, to the Michael Badnarik activist mailing-list. I've already received some requests to adapt and republish it elsewhere. So perhaps these words will soon be appearing in a newspaper near you! If you recognize this letter in your local media, regardless of byline, please drop me a line!
