War critics are hypocrites

My eye was drawn to two letters by their violent titles “Soldiers are murderers” (Steve Salter, July 19) and “Either all lives are sacred, or none” (Aaron Spector, July 19), and I was greatly disturbed by what I read there. War aside, because as Gen. Robert E. Lee said, “It is well that war is so terrible – lest we should grow too fond of it.” That is not the disquieting issue.\nYou both lament the loss of civilian life during war – that is a good thing. Death is a serious matter, especially in cases of murder. It is the essence of Man to protect those who cannot protect themselves, viz. women and children. You rightfully cry out against the killing of foreign children in foreign lands by Americans. You campaign for the sanctity of life. \nMr. Spector viciously attacks those who kill the innocent on foreign soil during times of war. At the same time, he perniciously denies the “slaughter (of) children.” \nMr. Salter: You claim that soldiers are murderers, and that is not only “OK’d” by our government but endorsed by it. \nCall it what you will – abortion, “terminating” a pregnancy or most maliciously, a “surgical procedure,” it is the killing of children. It happens every Thursday here in Bloomington and is lauded by the academic elite as the ultimate action of autonomy – “freedom” from male authority. Long and hard have you fought for this “freedom;” high is the death-toll, and still you decry the removal of an evil dictator. You discount the end of women’s suffrage when it happens in foreign lands because life was lost to achieve a common good. Fie, you who call yourselves men! Sitting in your cushy offices, fighting staged “battles” in the classroom when you find a student’s opinion “personally offensive.” Woe to you, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.\nExamining your definition of “freedom,” I am reminded of “The Jungle Book,” in which the wolves have fought long and hard to be the autonomous collective you dream of. Bagheera, the Panther responds both harshly and lovingly:\n“We be sick of this lawlessness, and we would be the Free People once more.” \n“Nay,” purrs Bagheera, “that may not be ... Not for nothing are ye called the Free People. Ye fought for freedom, and it is yours. Eat it, O Wolves.”