The American Spectator

Reader Mail

Their Claws Are Out

10.10.03 @ 12:01AM

TIGERS WILL BE TIGERS
Re: Reid Collins' Tiger, Tiger, Burning Bright:

... and the same goes for bears. Timothy Treadwell, the famous bear photographer / author / enthusiast, and his girlfriend were killed by a brown bear in Alaska. He lived among the bears and got absurdly close to them unarmed. He in effect was saying that the bear's life was more important than his own. Too bad he forgot the verity that man is a special creation of God and more valuable to Him than wildlife. Too bad that his ignorance sacrificed his girlfriend's life and, of course, the bear died anyway. What a waste.
-- Richard Anderson

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE
Re: Reader Mail's Neumayr and the Groper:

Lots of carping, complaining and otherwise on Mr. Neumayr's position regarding California's new Governor-elect. I enjoy seeing the rich diversity of opinion. Personally I too would have been unable to cast my vote for (R)nold. I still live with a stupid vote over 30 years ago providing me with David Obey's representation. I do, however, understand how it became (R)nold's race and not McClintock's. So many people just don't feel their vote actually matters and even if (R)nold was a less than perfect (indeed) Republican, he was clearly, very clearly, the lesser of the evils presented. Sometimes voters just gotta do what they think they gotta do.
-- Roger Ross
Tomahawk, WI

George Neumayr writes: "It would be more honest if they just dropped the charade and admitted to raw power politics, à la Mr. Webster, instead of trying to browbeat conservatives not on board into believing that the election of a gang-banging Hollywood groper is a meaningful victory over Clinton Democrats."

Attempted browbeating aside (is that a felony or a misdemeanor?), Mr. Neumayr appears willing to accept the verdict of a defunct skin magazine and a tired old newspaper as to the guilt of the "gang-banging Hollywood groper." Many of us simply believe there is a clear difference in the evidence underlying allegations against the Terminator and the Internimator. This argument is in a terminal loop. Ultimately, as they say, it is a matter for the jury. It does not mean we are "Carvillian sophists" for expressing logical differences of opinion about the definition of credible evidence.

In any event, it most certainly would have been a victory for Clinton if Arnold had not won, because he was the only non-Democrat who had a chance. And a loss for Clinton has inherent value of its own, especially if one believes as I do that Arnold is a far better man.
-- Robert Martins
Alexandria, VA

PATRIOT ACTS
Re: David Hogberg's Scoundrel Slime:

This concerns the article "Scoundrel Slime." In the article, Hogberg claims that Krugman's definition of patriotism, "whether you are willing to take risks and make sacrifices, including political sacrifices, for the sake of your country," supports the fact that Bush is a patriot, saying that Bush is benefiting our country with the war and his sacrifice is his loss in American approval. I disagree. I believe that by the definition, Bush is not a patriot; he is sacrificing our country for the sake of his own little whims and grudges about Iraq. This war on Iraq has not been for the good of our country, but has only succeeded in killing over 300 American soldiers, far more than would have been killed by the "WMD threat" if we hadn't touched Iraq soil. Hogberg also claims the war is succeeding at its goal, of liberating Iraq. If I recall, the initial purpose of the war was to root out WMD. You conservatives need to get your facts straight and evidences straight. No "shooting first and verifying later." Conservatives are not patriots.
-- Stephen Powelson

Mr. Hogberg's on the political climate bears watching. Not by the pundits, analysts and reporters. The class of people who need to take note are the politicos. No state as heavily Democratic as California would turn out a Democratic sitting governor unless there were fundamental issues underlying the change:

1) Rank and file Americans have had it with the pandering. Politicians and newspaper editors should take note.

2) Voters are onto the class warfare gambit. The voters are understanding there are problems that need to be solved as Americans not as some class.

3) Voters are also getting wise to the triangulation of NGO's and their affect on average Americans opportunities. The defeat of California infrastructure initiative is a case in point.

I wish Californians well and hope their new governor can pull off greatest budget turnaround in history.
-- John McGinnis
Arlington, TX

REAPING WHAT BILL SOWED
Re: R. Emmett Tyrrell's The Politics of Groping:

Letter to the Editor

topics:
Education, Trade, Bill Clinton, Sports, Religion, Catholicism, Islam, Hollywood, Law, Military, Iraq, Iran, NATO, Alaska, Oil