Europe's creations pale next to Mesoamerica's, Eurasia's

I suppose it's refreshing to be presented with unvarnished racism, such as that espoused by Silas Montgomery in his letter to the editor ("Those with Îbone to pick' should give thanks to Îthe white man,'" Monday). It is completely unsophisticated and straightforward in its bitterness and hatred.

Never mind that no European people ever came up with a completely original system of writing, unlike the Mesoamericans. Never mind that the bulk of Eurasia's collected knowledge was almost lost by the European cultures, and was only preserved by the Islamic world.

I can see our history department has its work cut out for it in freshman Silas Montgomery. Hopefully, he will go to class and learn something about the rest of the world.

Jenn Huff
anthropology sophomore

Non-white civilizations were historically ahead of Europe's

Thank you, Silas Montgomery, for one of the most racist letters I've ever read in the Wildcat ("Those with Îbone to pick' should give thanks to Îthe white man,'" Monday). True, Mr. Jiminez's letter was pretty insulting, but your insinuating that white cultures have historically been more "civilized" than non-white ones is hilarious. What is this, Rudyard Kipling's "White Man's Burden" all over again?

If a past society didn't wear Viking furs and pillage Europe, or didn't persecute others for being religiously or economically different from them, or didn't bang about in Conquistador costumes, then they were in a "proverbial dark ages?" Come on ÷ I thought you were a history major. How about those medieval Moors, who were toying with engineering and calculus centuries before medieval Europeans were learning to bathe themselves to avoid disease? Or Chinese philosophy and architecture while Europeans were chasing and burning witches? Psychology indeed.

But hey, if people like you insist on believing that they are superior to others because you're more prone to sunburn, then you go right ahead and expose your antiquated opinion.

Nicole Eggers
German studies senior

Fair and balanced columnists reject Îmanipulation of facts'

It is commendable that the Wildcat tries to present both liberal and conservative views on the war against terrorism, but the Wildcat forum should not give the representatives of the two groups a license to lie in order to further the agendas that each group might have.

Ms. Durrani claims that more Afghan civilians have died in the U.S. bombing than American civilians perished on Sept. 11 ("War is coming, but don't give up all hope yet," Friday). This statement is totally unsupported by any findings so far. So unless Ms. Durrani is getting her information from the remnants of the now-defunct Taliban ministry of information, she is merely concocting numbers to further her dubious cause.

Similarly, Mr. Winsky writes ("The Îsecret' to national security," Friday, Oct. 11), "The hundreds of people who are being held in the new secret trial program are receiving a fair trial." If the trials are indeed secret or even "private," as Mr. Winsky claims they are, how on earth would Mr. Winsky know that they were fair unless, of course, he is a CIA/FBI agent.

While it is essential to hear out diverse points of view to keep a democracy vibrant and alive, both liberals and conservatives have taken to manipulation of facts and outright lying to further their causes. Meanwhile, the vast majority of the people in this country who are centrist and sane are left without a voice. The Wildcat has a duty as a newspaper to give those in the center a voice. Giving a voice to both Muslim and Jewish lobbyists is not the same as fair and balanced reporting.

Amar Venkatesh
Class of 2000

Saddam leads a regime of terror, must be kicked out

I just wanted to write this so that I could get a few things off my chest that have been bothering me about this whole war that we are going to start with Iraq.

First, I would like to say that I completely agree with President Bush's feelings and plan regarding Iraq. Now, I must stress that my problem is with Saddam and not the people of Iraq; I believe we should go in there and kick his ass out. True, we should try to peacefully work it out. But hey, we have tried to for the last eleven years.

After the first Persian Gulf War, the United Nations imposed sanctions that were supposed to disarm Iraq so it would no longer be a threat to its neighbors or anyone else in that region. There have been numerous reports stating Iraq aided al-Qaeda in preparation for their attack on the United States. I believe beyond a shadow of a doubt that Iraq had some role in the Sept. 11th attacks. I also believe that Iraq still harbors terrorists, including al-Qaeda. If you watch the news, our government has provided enough evidence to show Saddam's regime is a threat to us. Was the pursuit of all terrorism, especially terrorism against the United States, something that people strongly supported not more than a year ago?

Remember the anthrax attacks against the United States after Sept. 11? Iraq is one of the countries capable of producing or, at the very least, procuring enough quantities of anthrax for an attack. Also, the capabilities of the terrorist cells clearly proved that they were more than capable of planning something like that.

Look, I don't like the idea of war anymore than anyone else. But when there is heavy evidence indicating that a country has helped in attacks and is a strong proponent of our downfall as a society, I think that drastic measures should be taken. When we have threatened action in the past, Iraq has always said they would cut the crap and cooperate. Well, I have had enough of the United States playing games with that country. I truly feel they helped attack us.

I don't feel like we should let a regime capable of hurting our country, our friends and family; people we care about and love go on terrorizing us ÷ because, you know what, that's exactly what Saddam's regime is: a terrorist regime.

Edward Beattie
business sophomore