EMAIL OF THE DAY

“I have been a severe critic of Saddam Hussein and his regime for decades and find it bizarre that you should have characterized my listing of his crimes as a sign of faint disappointment in his capture. I did not oppose the Iraq war, precisely on the grounds that I couldn’t bring myself to do anything that might keep him in power. I have many Iraqi Shiite friends who suffered from his genocidal policies.
All I was saying, or my wife was saying, was that the task of actually governing Iraq is still there for the Americans, and capturing Saddam may not change all that much–indeed, it is not entirely impossible that some aspects of governing may become more difficult.
There certainly is no doubt that the Bush imperial adventure in Iraq has been deeply marred by their arrogant ignorance of Iraq and their incredibly inept administration of the country since May. Saying so does not make me a supporter of Saddam, and, as someone who has often admired your writing, I am sorry to see you stoop to mere demagoguery.” – Professor Juan Cole. More feedback on the Letters Page.