No combat? Don't judge

To the Editor:

It has been said, "…war is hell."

You bet … fear, loneliness, isolation, jungles, snakes, rats, filth, bad food and who gave a damn.

In 1944, soldiers were being sent to retake the Philippines. It was my second day in New Guinea in a replacement center set up to replace the dead, wounded or the freaked out. The casualty list was enormous.

About 500 of us were called to a staging area. A general appeared on the platform dressed in a World War I-type cavalry uniform complete with hat, jodhpurs, very shiny expensive riding boots with spurs, and crop in hand. Handsome? Yes. But in the middle of a New Guinea jungle?

He welcomed us with, "Yes, you are replacements. If two out of three of you get to see home again, you will be the fortunate ones."

I am now 86 and an avid observer of news of the war. I am angered as I read and hear the petty, sophomoric rhetoric about war by supposedly learned men. The blunt language of World War II would likely stun even the best of today.

There are many opinions about any war. I say, if you have not experienced combat, don't judge.

Z.R. ORLOWSKI, WEST FRANKFORT

IDNR cuts unacceptable

To the Editor:

I want to thank Les Winkeler for exposing the severe cuts and stacking of political appointees at the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR).

A well-staffed and funded IDNR is essential to Illinois' natural resource conservation. Committed leadership has been replaced with political appointees. These appointees are often paid twice as much as the typical worker and contribute little to the agency's mission.

One of the biggest losses was the elimination of the EcoWatch Network program in October well before these current cuts. EcoWatch was a cost-effective program, which used volunteers to collect vital data, and involved 16,000 citizens including students in natural resource protection.

The program was a model for the effective use of government funds to protect the state's ecological health. Eliminating EcoWatch made no sense since it was maintainable using a very small staff. How can such actions make sense in these difficult economic times?

In addition to the EcoWatch staff, 35 IDNR positions were eliminated in October. Dragging out the layoffs was done intentionally in hopes this would detract attention from the severity of the cuts. It is always sad when people lose jobs. But I urge Illinoisans to consider the broader implications. Our irreplaceable natural heritage is at stake.

Tell Gov. Blagojevich to stop balancing the state's budget by compromising critical IDNR programs. If he is really serious about saving money, he should get rid of his political appointees. Write the governor and your legislators. The governor must be held accountable for his actions!

LAUREL TOUSSAINT, CARBONDALE

I hate grasshoppers

To the Editor:

I don't like grasshoppers. They're very indecent/dishonorable people.

Our last two presidents have been grasshoppers. Most previous was Bill Clinton, who hopped from the office of governor to the presidency. He lasted two terms, basically on lies and cheats.

Now we've got George Bush Jr., who also hopped. He has proven himself a liar and cheat, but many Americans don't mind that. They don't care that he's this authority-flouting cowboy who led us into this incredible Iraq war - and more than 1,000 Americans are dead because of his rampant incompetence. Maybe most Americans are too incompetent to vote, since they returned him to office.

We almost had another grasshopper, Sen. John Kerry. He almost hopped from Massachusetts to Washington, D.C. Who knows what might have happened?

These grasshoppers are a nuisance to democracy. Maybe we should get a constitutional amendment that no current office holder can try to get another office and that they be required to hold that office until their term has ended. Of course, these guys are often voted out by their constituents, as with Tom Daschle, but nobody liked him anyway.

We can't have too much honesty - Bush Jr. rarely practices honesty, as with this Iraq war. But the better idea, trading on Thomas Jefferson's notion, would be to have an actual constitutional convention, to keep what worked, take out what didn't and put in new material. The original wasn't meant to last forever.

I'm an American and I love my country for the right reasons.

CALVIN SHERIDAN, MOUNT VERNON

Carbondale owes an apology

To the Editor:

The city of Carbondale and its officials owe the public an apology and reason explaining why the Oakland Cemetery was closed from Thursday, Dec. 23 to at least Monday, Dec. 27. The city had two full days to plow the streets and open the cemetery to allow visitations on Christmas Day. My family and many more weren't able to pay our respects and visit our loved ones on such a special day.

Shame on you city of Carbondale, elected officials and those paid well enough to know better. You let a lot of people down.

WILLIAM D. STEINMETZ, MURPHYSBORO