I am responding to the letter of Jim Sawyer titled “Hail to the new state religion” published in the May 2, 2008, issue of the Enterprise.
Mr. Sawyer seems to feel that we as a nation seek only to repress other nations, using “anti-communism” and more recently the “war on terror” as excuses to do so. Sawyer sarcastically likens this to a state religion.
Ironically, Sawyer ignores what has been done in the name of Communism and radical Islam — both of which are state religions! Both of these ideologies are completely totalitarian and do not accept any ideas but their own — to go against either of them means imprisonment, torture (real torture) and death. Stalin killed millions of his own people, as did Mao Zedong in Red China. We only have to recall the events of 9/11 to know what radical Islam is capable of. So is it any wonder that we as a nation have opposed such ideologies and are doing what we can to combat them? All it takes is a little reading in history to understand all this, but Sawyer is ignoring history. But then again there have always been a certain number of “useful idiots” in our society that would work to undermine our government while at the same time encouraging our enemies. The great thing for Sawyer is that he lives in a country that will allow statements such as his and not have to fear being taken away in the middle of the night or have his head chopped off for his “heresy.”
I am not claiming that we are perfect as a nation, but the United States of America has always done what it could to help other nations who needed it and right now we are one of the few nations standing up to the threat of radical Islam in the world.
I am proud to be an American!
Mark Terry
Mill Creek
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