Letters to the Editor

Misguided

priorities

At President Obama's request, Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, commander of U.S. troops in Afghanistan, assessed the situation and concluded that the United States needed more troops there ("Report: More Afghan forces," Monday).

It is incredibly dismaying that the reason for continuing an open-ended war in Afghanistan, and propping up the thoroughly inept and corrupt Hamid Karzai government, might be, as your newspaper indicated, to avoid charges by Republicans of being perceived as weak on national security, even as some conservatives and many liberals are now questioning our goals and the best way to achieve them.

It is also dismaying that many of the same political figures who raise no objections to more than a half- trillion-dollar Pentagon budget for the new budget year, or fighting two wars at one time, or spending more than a trillion dollars (and counting) on both wars (neither revenue- neutral), do not hesitate to generate a fierce fight over health-care reform and resent every dollar spent to improve the lives of Americans.

Elaine Hughes

Maple Glen

Democrats backed

the arts tax, too

In her column regarding the recently adopted tax on tickets to cultural events in Pennsylvania, Karen Heller refers to Harrisburg Republicans' "us-versus-them mentality," and the alleged Republican antipathy toward Philadelphia ("Harrisburg lays an artless egg," Tuesday).

Yet she fails to mention that this tax could not have passed without the support of the Democratic-controlled state House or the state's Democratic governor, Ed Rendell. Why doesn't she also condemn "Harrisburg Democrats" for this new tax on the arts?

If you were a deeply cynical sort of person, you might think she has a partisan ax to grind, rather than to fairly criticize both parties for this new tax.

Patrick J. O'Leary

Philadelphia

Sale to Hershey's

would be a treat

It was such sweet news to read that Colosimo's gun shop would close - with the possibility that it could be sold back to the successors of the original owner of the property, Hershey's Chocolate ("Phila. gun shop faces federal charges," Wednesday).

How sweet it would be if the gun shop - likely a cause of untold gun violence in Philadelphia - closed to make way for a chocolate shop that would bring smiles to hundreds of children who may have been witness to that violence in their neighborhoods.

How sweet to get rid of guns and bring in Kisses!

Jean Haskell

Philadelphia

Jeanhaskel@comcast.net

U.S. chose

to go it alone

President Obama's challenge to other nations to forget our past unilateralism and join us in solving pressing global problems strikes me as either arrogant or naive.

We are the ones who long refused to sign the Kyoto Protocols. We are the ones who invaded Iraq on the basis of faulty intelligence. We are the ones who allowed the progress made in the Palestine-Israel situation to go to waste. I hope Obama's challenge came with assurances that we understand all of this, take responsibility for it, and truly resolve to do things differently beginning now.

Marie Conn

Hatboro

Obama gives

the world hope

Upon hearing President Obama's address at the United Nations Wednesday, one could not help but again feel encouraged and inspired ("Obama to U.N.: U.S. can't act alone").

In this new era of diplomacy and envisioning, he outlined a positive way forward for all nations and peoples. Many of us no doubt also felt proud and grateful to have worked for and cooperated with such a clear-thinking, open-minded, and forward-looking national and world leader. Yes, there is hope, if we put our hearts and minds to it.

David W. Long

West Chester

davidwarrenlong@comcast.net

A tax they

can't refuse

Isn't it strange that our Harrisburg elected officials have decided to tax museums and concerts, and increase the cigarette tax, yet left the sales tax on wine and spirits unchanged at 6 percent? How about a buck-a-bottle increase? After all, it is a monopoly!

Carl Witonsky

Bryn Mawr