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WSWS : Correspondence

Letters on the assault on Fallujah and the US elections

22 November 2004

Use this version to print | Send this link by email | Email the author

On “The siege of Fallujah: America on a killing spree”

Dear Mr. Van Auken,

I am really glad that you addressed the causes for a substantial support Bush received for a program of permanent war. You raise all manner of excellent issues. I wonder, though, whether your use of “militarism” is not an inexact term for a phenomenon that seems to me closer to fascism underneath its “born again” formal appearance.

I am thinking specifically of fascism as a mass movement of very threatened, shaken and displaced poor people who turn in a crisis to demagogic leaders with mystical-mythological theories repeated often in emotion laden terms identifying the enemy as an all powerful conspiracy by another “race,” Jewish or Arab. Bush himself and Reagan before him professed the ideology of Armageddon and Rapture, sort of our version of Teutonic myths from Wagner so beloved by the Hitler gang. Wagner’s “Ride of the Valkyre” and more contemporary neo-fascist tunes are employed in Fallujah to whip the soldiers into frenzy who are going after “that guy Satan,” as more than one senior American officer insisted.

I truly believe that recent Bin Laden and Zarqawi tapes belong to the genre of “The Protocols of the Elders of Zion” forgeries and that revivalist meetings are today’s torchlight parades of a specific militarist ideology—-fascism. Dangerous folks.

Thank you for your brave presidential campaign.

Sincerely,

AL
18 November 2004
Toronto

To: Bill Van Auken,

This is one of the best articles I have ever read regarding the follies of the Iraq conflict. Your ability in covering the salient points is second to none.

It is nothing but a disgrace, and blame can be directed at the American people. They made the decision to keep Bush there, and as he said, they have given him the “capital” to do his will.

I shall watch for all your work in future, particularly in relation to the Middle East. I have friends in Iran, and think they are in peril, if not from the bullies (USA), then from the militaristic Israelis.

Keep up the excellent writing.

RW
18 November 2004
Canberra, Australia

On “US media applauds destruction of Fallujah”

Thanks for the fine job of reporting on what a lousy and insidious job the US media did covering the criminal attack in Fallujah. I can only shake my head in shame as everybody cheers on the destruction of a city. I haven’t looked on your web site yet, but you should also do a story about the elusive Mr. Zarqawi, He must be pretty good to have conveniently slipped past the American troops surrounding the city since April. Maybe they perfected the ole “invisible cloak,” or more likely the troops didn’t recognize him because no one has a recent photograph. You can also demonstrate how he magically re-grew a leg; after hearing for years that he lost it in Tora Bora, some US people say he has both legs again. (I guess that they might be shy about reporting miracles.)

Anyways, I was purposely searching the web for stories, and you are right: no one covered it as the atrocity that it is. And to add insult to injury, no one is following up by reporting on the ground in the newly “liberated” Fallujah. Funny thing, no one threw the expected flowers; maybe they killed off the flower throwers by mistake. (I’m sure that they would use the excuse that they thought they were throwing hand grenades.)

You should also cover how the media tried to paint the picture that the marine that murdered the wounded prisoner did so because he was having a “bad day” after his buddy was killed previously.

DJ
17 November 2004

Thank you for this wonderful piece from David Walsh!

I get much of my daily info and links from “WhatReallyHappened.com” and they often include articles from your site. The position expressed there most often reflects my own—especially now, with Dubya being reelected.

I was horrified to watch the Fallujah attack unfolding before us on cable news—and to see that fellow citizens around me and just about everyone in the media was treating it as though...“oh, well, another day at the wars.”

Considering the climate of fear, gloating conservative backlash and the subsequent self-muzzling of the citizenry and media, I was wondering if I’d ever find a venue to express my moral repugnance to this cursed war and the ongoing attacks upon the patriots and nationalists in the various cities—and skepticism about the behavior of the “Holy American Troops” and their saintly activities as they systematically go about maiming and murdering thousands of helpless brown-skinned people.

But now, I’ll use Mr. Walsh’s research to back up my own debate, on e-groups and with acquaintances!

Perhaps I’ll even get up the nerve to attempt yet another letter to the editor of Portland, Maine, paper (ostensibly “liberal”)!

Cheers,

A

The US media, actually most of the media worldwide, is bought and controlled by the powers that be. Of course, the truth will be suppressed. What better way to control and lead the sheeple of this world to slaughter, or at the least, under total control.

D
17 November 2004

P.S. Keep up the great articles; who knows, maybe one day people may wake up and say, hey...what happened, I want my freedom back.

Dear editor,

Wishing to respond to David Walsh’s challenge to readers to find an editorial decrying the destruction of Fallujah, I spent considerable time looking through US newspapers on the Internet.

Unfortunately, I have to report that I came up with precisely nothing.

Kind regards,

EG
17 November 2004

Dear WSWS,

Thank you for all the insightful articles since the election. I have not been pleased with the conclusions in the liberal media (Salon, Village Voice, et al), which focus on the worst possible outcomes but seemingly through the wrong prism. I must admit I was apprehensive that before the election you implied that certain social issues (abortion and gay rights) were not strong differences between the candidates, but after everything that’s happened it’s tragically obvious that the Democrats will not hesitate to jettison these fundamentally simple issues, leaving many people with no reason at all to vote for them. I know this party is not interested enough in preserving civil rights and peace and in making the slightest attempt to narrow the egregious gap between the rich and poor. My question: What do I do? How do I join your party? The same questions posed by many people, I’m sure.

Many regards,

MB
17 November 2004

Dear Editor,

I am very pleased by reading your articles; it shows there are Sri Lankans who are really going for justice and democracy to all citizens of the Republic of Sri Lanka.

As a Dutch citizen who is interested in international affairs, I like to follow Sri Lankan politics day by day. On behalf of my country, I encourage you to go forward to use the right of free media and to be critical of Sri Lankan politics.

I hope soon there will be a glance of hope for all the citizens in your country to enjoy real peace. I am also aware that not all citizens in your country really enjoy this no peace/no war situation. It is the right of all Sri Lankans to stand up against injustice and to support peace and harmony of all communities who are living in your country instead of dividing the country by race, skin, caste, etc.

In my opinion, Sri Lanka is still not a democracy, and I hope your party and ideas will be brought into reality.

All the best, and I will support and encourage all Sri Lankans to make real democracy and peace without being selfish and greedy.

Yours faithfully,

P.R
9 November 2004
The Netherlands