We cannot act alone in this fight

I, for one, do not feel threatened by Iraq. I do not believe my country is threatened by Iraq. Iraq’s neighbors do not act threatened.

Our president’s fixation with a perceived danger compels one to ask: What precisely is the nature of the threat and in what form does it exist?

It is one thing for a deranged religious fanatic to commit suicide as an individual, but a nation does not commit suicide. So President Bush’s assessment of Iraq’s intentions is wrong. His unceasing campaigning for the use of force preemptively, even unilaterally if he so decides, is an appalling violation of America’s precept of living by the rule of law.

Our hope must be that Congress moves firmly to dampen the rash rhetoric that could propel us into armed conflict. Who among them would care to explain to the family of an American serviceman killed, “Well, we thought they intended to harm us?” As a World War II fighter pilot, I learned two rules of warfare: rule No. 1. In war, young men are killed. Rule No. 2. Nobody can change Rule No. 1.

Let the United Nations shoulder the primary responsibility for dealing with Iraq and let America give it its full support. But not alone.

Edmonds