A commander in chief who provokes attack
East Meadow, L.I.: I’m writing to express my deep alarm regarding the president’s remarks on Oct. 6, taunting Iran to drop nuclear weapons on Los Angeles and San Diego.
Those reckless statements put millions of American citizens at grave risk, as well as the thousands of dedicated service members stationed on the West Coast, including personnel from our Navy, Army, Air Force, Space Force, Marines and Coast Guard. This issue is deeply personal for my family. My eldest son, his wife and my 11-year-old granddaughter live in Mission Valley, San Diego. Hearing those provoking comments has caused my granddaughter tremendous anxiety and fear — a concern that is entirely reasonable given the severity of such rhetoric.
Our elected leaders have a duty to protect their constituents and defend our nation’s security. Irresponsible statements that incite war and endanger American lives can not go unanswered. Bad things happen when good people do nothing to stand up against such reckless leadership.
I urge all elected officials, regardless of party affiliation, to publicly disassociate themselves from these dangerous statements and take formal action to hold the president accountable. Our local and national representatives must demonstrate that they prioritize the safety, security and democratic values of the American people above all else.
Anthony Brancato
Airpower alone
Ridgewood, N.J.: President Trump’s plan to continue to bomb Iran is a repeat of the Vietnam War’s Operation Rolling Thunder bombing campaign to end the war. It did not work for LBJ. It will not work for Trump.
Ed Houlihan
Rein him in
Vancouver: The orange, goofy and despicable imbecile is threatening again! Americans, please have some mercy on the rest of us. Find some way to neuter this imbecile before he takes down the entire world. He and his desperate terrorist ally Netanyahu are going down in flames and the world is cheering, but there’s no need for us to go down with them.
Wayne Bailey
The Founders erred
Briarwood: The nightmare of federal gridlock is an essential result of the American presidential form of government, especially under fascists like Trump. The better system is parliamentary: the head of government is the prime minister representing the majority in the legislature — executive/legislative fusion. New elections can be held without waiting four years for a presidential election. Congress is paralyzed with Trump’s policies in line with Stephen Miller, restrained only by the courts. Vladimir Lenin was correct in the organization of a political party (“What Is To Be Done?”) and of the state (“The State and Revolution”). Trump particularly projects “Imperialism: The Last Stage of Capitalism.” Trade unionism has failed American workers. Republicans and Democrats have fostered a Gramscian hegemony of capitalist monetization. Democratic socialism or Social Democracy/ Soviet Democracy. What is to be done? Amend the Constitution for a parliamentary democracy.
Joseph N. Manago
Inconvenient kids
Manhattan: As a Palestinian parent of a 7-year-old daughter crushed under 34 tons of concrete because the Israelis suspected there might be some Hamas people living in our building, I can only concur with the outrage over Mayor Mamdani saying anything sympathetic about Palestinians on the anniversary of Oct. 7 (“Mamdani’s Oct. 7 statement sparks anger,” Oct. 8). I now realize that I should’ve had a vasectomy the moment Hamas seized dictatorial power in Gaza and cancelled elections. That way, Israel would’ve had a clearer shot at the enemy when the inevitable day of reckoning came. My apologies.
Steven Forbis
Fight for survival
Brooklyn: At last Wednesday’s vigil, Palestinian activists shouted that Oct. 7 “was not the beginning” (“Protest throws Oct. 7 vigil into chaos,” Oct. 8). They’re 100% correct. Israel has been attacked relentlessly since 1948. It’s high time Israel struck back hard in a way that, as Benjamin Netanyahu put it, they’ll remember for generations. They always cite the statistics of how many Palestinians have been killed. War isn’t about reaching equal body counts. For Israel, it’s a fight for its existence. Its enemies couldn’t beat it when its air force consisted of a bunch of ragtag crop dusters. How mindless of Palestinians to keep attacking it now. And how stupid of Palestinian activists in this country to keep supporting Palestinian aggression. It’s obvious that peace isn’t on the Palestinian agenda. Israel has every right to defend itself and should keep doing so for as long as it takes to wipe out its enemies.
Josh Greenberger
Illegitimate inception
Lackawaxen, Pa.: To Voicer Ebere Osu: My statement was: “Jews were a minority there when Israel declared statehood.” Among the peculiarities of the English language, “there” is an adverb of place, limiting where the assertion is intended, and comprehended only with its referent (“Mandatory Palestine”) that immediately precedes it. The real confusion is yours, apparently believing that Mandatory Palestine and the State of Israel could coexist simultaneously. Only with the U.K.’s relinquishment of its mandate could another status result. Israel chose one — independence — that had no basis in law or treaty. The only legitimate option at that point was for the entirety of Mandatory Palestine to become a UN trust territory. Pragmatically, the Zionists were correct: that wasn’t going to work out well for the Jews. However, bringing the Arab-partitioned portion of Mandatory Palestine under the moribund Trusteeship Council’s control may be the only solution now.
John A. MacKinnon
Lab origin
Bronx: My fears have been allayed after the World Health Organization declared that a case of pneumonic plague that resulted in the death of a worker at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute presents a very low risk outside of Russia. To remove all doubt, perhaps we can send Anthony Fauci over and he can let us know that it was, in fact, caused by exposure to tainted muskox meat sold at a Siberian open market.
Joe Schulok
Moral decay
Manhattan: The planned live-streaming of an execution in Texas represents a full-circle course of the United States in this century. The U.S. invaded Iraq to make it more American. What actually happened is the Saddamification of the U.S. We did not export democracy, we imported corruption, indecency and performative retribution. Under Saddam Hussein’s regime, violence was employed as a public tool of state power to instill compliance and fear. I fail to see a material difference.
Daniel Dolgicer
Stellar STEM
Brooklyn: The news lately is so full of angry stories and division, so I’m pleased to read about the Nobel Prize awards in science. These stories are inspirational and illustrate the importance of education and of supporting science and related fields. I hope the science awards motivate young people to study science topics. In fact, everyone should be learning more about science, medicine, math and such. Science literacy is so important.
Ellen Levitt