Susan Kirk's slur against Senator John Kerry in her letter of February 27 must not go unanswered. Just as Mrs. Kirk's husband should be honored for his service in Vietnam, so should John Kerry be honored, not only for doing his duty as a member of the U.S. military, but for doing his duty as a citizen of the United States by speaking out against the pointless sacrifice of American lives in a futile war. There is no doubt that Kerry's opposition to the war was motivated precisely by his concern for his brothers in arms, who were sent into harm's way by cynical politicians who valued their lives too cheaply. That perspective is needed in Washington more than ever today, when our brave young people are once again being sacrificed to the egos and ambitions of bureaucrats who have not experienced the horrors of war first-hand. By spilling his blood on the battlefields of Vietnam, John Kerry earned the right to speak his mind about the wisdom and rightness of the war. George W. Bush, like so many other high-ranking officials in our government, did not.

Sincerely,

James E. Toney