Letters & Submissions

To the Editor:

I just finished reading Charlie Remy's opinion on the cover story, "When Duty Calls: Alumni Dispatches from Iraq," from the Elon Magazine. It amazes me that he drew such different conclusions than I did from the story. What bothered me most was the fact that he took experiences of alumni and turned them into Elon's endorsement of Operation Enduring Freedom. It wasn't an endorsement; it was soldiers sharing their experiences. Those soldiers happened to be Elon alumni. Then afterwards he belittled the intelligence of the individuals who have chosen the military as a career.

I personally know two of the individuals that were featured in the article, Matt Ritchie and John Kirchgessner (a.k.a. Johnny K.). They are two very intelligent individuals who decided to join the military upon graduating and have had to make sacrifices because of their choice to join. They may not even agree with the decision to invade Iraq, but they are sacrificing themselves to help bring freedom to individuals that have never experienced it before.

If you believe the United States and the newly formed Iraqi government are not making advances in improving life in Iraq, then visit http://www.usaid.gov. The length of time that it has taken to improve conditions there is due to the fact that the former regime had so poorly neglected its infrastructure. I am sure that the people of Sadr City would agree that the reason there continues to be sewage, water and electrical problems in the "slum" is because of the United States. Saddam pilfered the country and made sure that he was housed in luxury, while the people of Sadr City lived in filth because they happened to be a different ethnicity. They are making advances in Sadr City, slowly, but they are being made. Ryan Cunningham was correct when he said, you don't hear that on the news.

Elon encourages their students to have different experiences. Because Matt and Johnny K. chose to enter the military doesn't mean they're "under mind control," as Charlie suggests. It means they chose a different path than what Charlie would have chosen. Using that logic would mean that Elon should not have done an article on alumni who now work for Xbox, because video gaming endorse mindless children and violence in schools.

Charlie states, "I hope that Elon will produce more (true patriots) in the future." Matt, Johnny K., and countless others are no longer "true patriots" because they joined the military and are stationed around the world? They aren't "true patriots" because the military sends them to SE Asia for tsunami relief, they aren't watching a wall to keep a tyrant from moving South into a free country (the Korean peninsula), and to make sure that new democracies are successful in Afghanistan and Iraq? Just because they believe differently than you, does not make them unpatriotic and unintelligent; it means they have different experiences.

Charlie is on the verge of calling all those who volunteer for the military "baby killers," because of a few misguided individuals at Abu Ghraib prison. The U.S. Military Code of Justice does allow soldiers to reject an order that they believe is illegal. Let's not compare the Elon alumni to those who did not use that discretion. The order to give people the opportunity to vote and following it is heroic and brave, not "mindless" and illegal.

If the United States made a mistake, we still have to make sure that Iraq succeeds as a democracy and unfortunately the military is a part of that process. If those Elon alumni and others had not sacrificed to give Iraqi's the ability to vote, democracy would not have taken place. Different people believe different things, just because they don't agree with you doesn't mean that they are imbeciles and it doesn't mean we should make their experiences count less. Accepting that others believe differently in what a "true patriot" does and experiences from all over is what makes Elon great. Instead of spitting in their face because we disagree with their principles, let's tell them, "I'm glad you made it home."

- Matt Carson, Class of 2001

To the Editor:

I was pretty appalled with Jason Pressberg's opinion article last Thursday on the Confederate flag. I have read your opinions many a time and disagreed, but I could not remain silent on this particular one. How dare you compare the Confederate flag to the Nazi swastika! Why am I angered by this comparison?

3rd Lt. John Lawson Wimberly. He fought for Louisiana and the Confederacy in the Civil War. He did not own any slaves, and neither did his four brothers who also fought for the South, three of which died in the war. They fought for national independence and their homeland. Wimberly was my great-great-great grandfather. This fact alone, explains why I and countless others feel so strongly about the Confederate flag. The number of Southerners with ancestors, who fought in the war, is about one-third, while the number of Northerners today with ancestors who fought is about one-thirtieth (The result of immigration). My disagreement with Jason is that Southerners are not trying to change the meaning of the Confederate flag by promoting it, but they are displaying a symbol that many have always felt strongly about as Southerners. To many it a symbol of courage, honor and pride.

You view the Civil War as being all about slavery, an extremely misguided opinion. As Americans, we are all guilty of the tragic legacy of slavery. The fact that slavery existed in the North and South both is shameful. But I know my ancestors did not fight for slavery. More so Jason, you may be surprised to know the majority of those who fought for the South didn't own slaves, including C.S.A. Generals, Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson, among many others.

However, you may be even more surprised to learn that U.S. General Ulysses S. Grant did own slaves during the Civil War. If you really think the North fought to end slavery, explain to me why the Emancipation Proclamation didn't free the slaves in the border-states (Missouri, West Virginia, etc).I could go on.

I'm not saying the Confederate flag should be flaunted or that the South should rise again. I just think that people should take the time to read more about the subject, before comparing the Confederate flag to a Nazi swastika.

- Brandon Gauthier, Class of 2006