Inbox

Tough Talk
You report that Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the new head of NATO, is a Dane with a tough, no-nonsense style who will sort out NATO in Afghanistan [Sept. 14]. Why, then, does he say, “We would very much like to see further contributions from the European side”? A tough, no-nonsense style would be to say, “France and Germany, your troops are no use behind a hedge 500 miles away from the fighting — get them where the action is.”
Bob Wydell,
Oswestry, England

Mr. Popularity — Not!
Re your glowing report on “popular” Republican Senator Charles Grassley and his efforts in the health-care debate [Sept. 14]: I’d like to tell the rest of the story. When Grassley talked about “pulling the plug on Grandma,” he also pulled the plug on much of his support. The backlash has been tremendous, as evidenced partly by the many recent articles and letters in the Des Moines Register. Lifelong Republicans have vowed never to vote for him again. Iowa ranks third in the nation in percentage of people over 85 and, no doubt, in Medicare recipients, so we know what a government-run, one-payer system can do, and most of us are demanding that a public option be included. So when Grassley puts on his flannel shirt and poses for pictures on a red tractor in his campaign for re-election next year, he will face an uphill battle.
Priscilla Brown,
Cedar Falls, Iowa, U.S.

Scotland in the Spotlight
I think the release of Abdel Basset Ali Al-Megrahi was unprincipled and shortsighted [Sept. 14]. But Americans, before getting steamed up about it, should remember that for 30 years the U.S. gave a safe haven to scores of Irish terrorists implicated in the murder of innocent British civilians. Irish terrorists sincerely believed that their cause justified murder; so do Islamic terrorists. And it’s natural for Americans to feel that the deaths of Americans matter more than the deaths of Britons — but they cannot expect Britons to agree with them.
David Watkins,
Cardiff

In Scotland, we were aware that the compassionate release of the Lockerbie bomber would be hard for some Americans. However, the decision was reached on firm ethical principles, and we are proud to have a government that can be relied on to adhere to its own laws. We clearly don’t need to take lessons on morality from the U.S. The British Labour government may have questions to answer regarding their relations with Libya, but any question of collusion with the SNP administration in Scotland is, frankly, ludicrous.
Malcolm Kerr,
Brodick, Scotland

Once again we see financial and political interests come before justice and decency. Al-Megrahi’s release from prison after only eight years is shameful, and even more so since it was officially based on “compassionate grounds.” Where is the compassion for the 270 people who died, and their loved ones? My heart goes out to the victims’ families.
Stefania Lionetti,
Lugo, Italy

So the Al-Megrahi affair might make the special relationship between the U.K. and the U.S. a bit less special? That’s fine by me: the special relationship committed us to the senseless war in Iraq. If the release of al-Megrahi really was done to further British commercial interests in Libya, it was still the decision of an independent democracy and no different from what the U.S. would have done in similar circumstances.
Chris Washington,
Cheadle, England

A Life in the Wilderness
I can’t imagine how difficult it must have been for William Yang to grow up Chinese and gay in Cairns during the 1950s [Sept. 14]. Even today, this sun-kissed city with sultry sea breezes has dark undercurrents of prejudice and homophobia. Just recently I witnessed several of its citizens stage a walkout during a screening of Milk, the biopic about homosexual politician Harvey Milk. Not for nothing is this part of Queensland sometimes referred to as the “Deep North.”
Garth Clarke,
Sydney