Letters to the editor

Rocket rain

In the article “Israel eyes U.N. force for Gaza border” (Page 1, Monday), The Washington Times reports that “Hamas militants have for months fired crude rockets at the Israeli town of Sderot, usually with little effect.” More than 100 rockets fired by Palestinian terrorists from the nearby Gaza Strip have hit Israel in the past week. That is in addition to the 147 that reached Israeli territory between the start of a “cease-fire” in November and May 16. If hundreds of terrorist rockets had been striking a Washington suburb of comparable size — say, Fairfax City — frequently paralyzing daily life, occasionally killing residents, and causing up to one-third of the population to leave, The Times no doubt would useother descriptions than “usually with little effect.” Intolerable, for one.

ERIC ROZENMAN

Washington Director

Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America

Washington

‘Guam is American soil’

The Heritage Foundation’s Ed Feulner wrote that the Guam Loyalty Recognition Act, passed overwhelmingly by the House and now before the Senate, is merely a reparations giveaway — certain to open American wallets to Bosnians, Afghans and any other folks from foreign lands where American troops have served (“Wrong way on reparations,” Commentary, Monday).

Just days before Mr. Feulner’s rock-ribbed “not-one-penny” stand in The Washington Times, two U.S. servicemen from Guam were killed in Somalia. In point of fact, Guam, with a population of about 100,000 Americans, is in double figures for home-grown young people killed while wearing American uniforms. In Vietnam, Guam lost more Americans per capita than any of the states — 74.

Guam is American soil, and the people of Guam are America’s most loyal citizens. Mr. Feulner equates the Americans of Guam with Bosnians, Serbs, Iraqis and Filipinos. Those are citizens of other countries; Guam is American.

The Guam Loyalty Recognition Act is not a reparations scam, but Mr. Feulner paints it with that broad brush. He speaks to the values of people who step over a buck to pick up a penny.

Guam is America’s most forward-strategic base in the Pacific. The people of Guam are making room for 8,000 more U.S. Marines evicted from Okinawa; Guam is within striking distance of North Korean and Chinese missiles; Guam has never turned its back on America.

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