Mailbag
Comments on President ReaganTo the editor: Some points in Jerome Joyce's letter of June 24 call for response. In one paragraph he appears to try to take away President Reagan's part of the credit for his role in bringing an end to (what was most certainly) the evil empire, choosing to instead credit Lech Walesa's Solidarity movement. Mr. Joyce is perhaps unaware of a joint agreement between then President Reagan and Pope John Paul II to provide covert support for Solidarity. My understanding is that President Reagan secretly arranged to provide $50 million and other assistance in support of Solidarity. Mr. Reagan's military buildup helped drive the Soviet economy to the brink of destruction and his vision helped convince Soviet leaders it was not worth continuing things as they had been. Mr. Joyce indicates that Bishop Romero and several nuns were murdered by "contras." My recollection is that they were not killed by the Nicaraguan Resistance (which the Marxist Sandinistas and their sympathizers here call "contras"), but by agents of the El Salvadoran government (with which corrupt regime we were probably too cozy, anyway). Regarding the striking air traffic controllers: they were critical safety personnel and were under a "no-strike" contract. (I would hope that their contract had special arrangements for resolving wage disputes, but I do not know.) When they walked off the job, they not only broke their promise, they also potentially or actually put thousands of lives at risk. I was in Oshkosh attending the EAA convention at the time President Reagan announced the firing of the controllers. When the announcement was made over the PA system, the crowd of aviation enthusiasts -- the very folks who would naturally be most sympathetic to the controllers -- let loose with cheers and applause. The right to strike is great and important, but it is not absolute. Richard Bonomo, Madison The unborn need our protectionTo the editor: Our country which was so divided over the 2000 year presidential election seems to be heading to be even more divided over this year's. Our Catholic Church in the U.S. seems to be drawn into that division. There appears to be hatred by some for one candidate. That is not a Catholic position. We hate the sins, but we are to love the sinner. Our position on abortion is not an election day issue but the core issue for us. As Catholics, we have options for the poor. We support a "seamless garment" around all ending of life. We support refugees, the homeless, battered women, children-at-risk, the disabled, the prisoner, and the homebound ill. But as Pope John Paul II reminds us frequently, the unborn require our unremitting support. "So as we do unto the least of our brethren -- so we do unto Christ!" (Mt 25:31-46) There is no one more defenseless than the unborn -- no one more needing our protection and unequivocating backing. We cannot let our concern for the unborn lapse on any election day or for any candidate for any office where their actions may end the life of the unborn . . . or the ill elderly or disabled. We have a right to vote. But if the present elections do not permit you to vote pro-life AND to honor other necessary Catholic values (example: for the poor and marginalized), send a clear message to the national political system that our vote will not continue to be cast for the lesser of two non-options. We can write in a candidate or vote for a third candidate who is supportive of the pro-life position from conception to natural death. John Fernan, Madison
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