This page was last updated on August 7, 2004.

Vote Bush out of office; Gilda DeFerrari; Beaver County Times; June 7, 2004.

In summary, Ms. DeFerrari presents an anti-Bush diatribe bereft of supporting facts except for the number of Iraq War fatalities and their demographics.  Below is a detailed critique of the letter.

"As of April 30, 736 U.S. soldiers have died in Iraq.  The majority of the dead were in their early 20s.  The youngest was 18 years old, the oldest 55 years old.  Twenty of the deaths were suicides.  Nearly 11,000 troops have been medically evacuated, many very seriously wounded.

"Thirty-seven of the deaths were from Pennsylvania.  Twelve of those were from western Pennsylvania.

[RWC] At least some of Ms. DeFerrari's facts are incorrect.  She writes, "the majority of the dead were in their early 20."  In reality, most fatalities in Iraq as of June 26, 2004, were over 25 years old (53%).  This matches the age profile of active duty personnel as a whole.

"How many more lives will be lost or shattered in a war that is illegal and immoral?  The Bush administration has betrayed us with lies on reasons for war.  We all need to tell the president to pull U.S. forces out of Iraq."

[RWC] Ms. DeFerrari did not explain why she believes our actions in Iraq are illegal and immoral.  She merely made "drive by" accusations.

What is illegal?  Over 70% of the U.S. Congress approved the action (House Joint Resolution 114) and the action was consistent with U.N. resolutions, not that we should let U.N. resolutions get in the way of our national defense.

Was it immoral because 25 million Iraqis are now free?  Is it immoral because we are fighting terrorists on their soil?

Regarding troop withdrawal, an early June 2004 LA Times poll indicates less than 20% of Americans believe an immediate withdrawal is the correct path.¹  Indeed, the poll found "73 percent said that there should be no specific date for withdrawal because disorder and civil war could result."

"Ultimately, the people need to vote George Bush out of office for his lies and for his defiance of the rule of law."

[RWC] Ms. DeFerrari did not tell us what lies President Bush told about Iraq.  If it is that worn out line about WMD, Ms. DeFerrari conveniently forgets that most lawmakers in Washington, DC, including Democrats, had access to the same intelligence reports as President Bush and concluded Iraq had WMD before the Iraq War.  If they did not, do you believe Congress would have approved the Iraq War resolution cited above?  Even the United Nations Security Council unanimously agreed, though it refused to take action.  If she wants to say President Bush lied about WMD, Ms. DeFerrari needs to make that claim for the vast majority of the world.

Regarding rule of law, President Bush did nothing illegal as covered above.

1. Americans Say Iraq War Not Worth It - LA Times Poll; Reuters; June 11, 2004.

© 2004 Robert W. Cox, all rights reserved.