The following is a selection of recent letters to the World Socialist Web Site.
On “The execution of Stanley Tookie Williams”
Thank you for highlighting the murder of Tookie Williams. This country has been at war with its people since its inception, and the needless torture and killing of its citizens should no longer come as a surprise. The child warriors that come from our ghettos have had to fight for their very life on a daily basis. These people are the product of a capitalist throw-away society.
Any one that champions their right to share in the rich elitist pot of wealth is called a “radical,” and like them is open to persecution and execution. As long as the people, the workers, choose to support the barbaric “eye for an eye,” “get them before they get you” tactics that this country uses against its own people and those around the world, the WSWS will have no shortage of murders to write about. Thank you again for helping organize the workers of this country.
CV
Ridgway, Colorado
13 December 2005
On “Thousands protest outside San Quentin: Worldwide outrage over execution of Stanley Tookie Williams”
Thank you for this article. It should be required reading for everyone. Your words express so well how I feel. I was outraged after reading Arnold’s reasons for denying clemency. He sounded so full of himself and so ignorant and cold. I was most disturbed by his words concerning the dedication in William’s book. I sent those words to a number of friends and will now follow with your article.
MT
14 December 2005
On “Bush defends illegal spying on Americans: the specter of presidential dictatorship”
One aspect of the situation was not mentioned in the article, which might become very relevant: The Bush administration may very well understand that, under current law, it has committed illegal acts. It may be expecting that, should it be challenged in a serious way, it will take this challenge to the Supreme Court.
With the current composition of the Court, the administration may (rightly) expect that its breaking of the law will be made retrospectively legitimate by the Court, considering the alleged “national security” issues the administration will undoubtedly raise.
EG
Brooklyn, New York
19 December 2005
* * *Just in time for Christmas, we have been given the gift of subjectship and have been relieved of that pesky role of citizenship!
EK
19 December 2005
On “British newspaper alleges Israel is planning a military strike on Iran”
Thank you for bringing to our attention the troubling presence of Israeli military and intelligence units in the Kurdish northern provinces of Iraq. Clearly, a planned strike on Iran’s nuclear installation is now on track. I wonder, though, if this strike is not part of a greater scheme. Bush and Sharon (like Hitler) have this in common: both are attracted to great schemes, the former in building business empires, the latter the mythical empire of the Biblical King Salomon (Eretz Israel). They are, more troublingly, both serial bunglers. Bush led enterprise after enterprise to ruin before the fate of the world was put into his hands, while Sharon’s many failures of his bloodthirsty life were capped two decades ago by the insane invasion of Lebanon project to put a fascist Falangist party in power.
Here are the signs that something is up now. All of a sudden the American Viceroy in Iraq is making nicey-nicey to Sunni interests. For instance, every other day some new Iraqi Interior Ministry torture center is uncovered and given wide publicity by the American forces who would never have thought that such a thing could happen on their watch. Then the Israeli paper Ha’aretz reports that an important meeting has taken place between Iraqi Sunni Sheiks and the Barzani faction of Kurdish opportunists. It is also reported that in a recent high-level conference, Israeli intelligence had advised the Americans against overthrowing Assad. It is very unlikely that the Sharon circle does not have a Big Plan to propose to their American uncle. I fear this new scheme involves an alliance of Kurds and sections of Sunnis to repeat the Iraq- Iran war along sectarian Sunni-Shiite lines. Such a war could draw in every country in which there is Shiite-Sunni tension, and that includes a lot of places in the Middle East.
AL
Toronto, Ontario
15 December 2005
On the US military in Iraq
My son is serving a tour of duty in Najaf, Iraq. He has only been there one month. Unfortunately, I cannot support his decision to go there as I do not believe the United States has any business in their country telling their people what to do. Maybe it is not that simple, but to me that is all it comes down to. I am afraid to write what I think about our president, as it wouldn’t be anything good. I just pray my son will be safe and that he has no part in hurting anybody. Thank you.
AF
Hermiston, Oregon
20 December 2005
On “The Democratic Party and the struggle against the Iraq war”
Your clarification of the Democratic Party’s real agenda struck bulls-eye. The tweedledee-tweedledum put over on the American population has worked consistently for nigh 200 years now, but it is crumbling.
The problem for the Oligarchy is that they can never leave well enough alone. That would have been to leave Saddam Hussein in power as their chosen puppet; even Bush 1 was smart enough to know that. But even despite the Democrat-Republican shell game, a madman has come to the throne, and as you so adroitly point out, none of the party hacks has the intestinal fortitude to bite the hand that feeds them.
TG
16 December 2005
On “Sri Lanka: police raids against CWC leaders”
This is the sort of threatening and harassing tactics used by the racist Sri Lankan state force to suppress the freedom of law-abiding workers and citizens of Sri Lanka. The excuse here is that the Ceylon Workers Congress is not prepared to support a one-sided racist government, decisions taken on a democratic basis. The International Community should now realise that the Sri Lankan Government is a racist government.
DV
18 December 2005