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For a different perspective, please consider these letters from parents of a son killed in the attack. They are friends of close friends of mine---you may not agree with them, but please respect their feelings--- Mr.& Mrs. Rodriguez wrote: > > Dear friends, colleagues and family: > > Thes are copies of a letter that Phyl and I sent to the Times and a >letter we sent to Bush. For some of you it's the first news you hear of our >loss. Sorry for the anonymity; we have other things to take care of > We will have a more personal contact letter. > Please send them to others of our friends and use them any way you >see fit > Thanks, > Phyllis and Orlando > Copy of letter sent to NY Times: > > Not in Our Son's Name > Our son Greg is among the many missing from the World Trade Center >attack. Since we first heard the news, we have shared moments of grief, >comfort, hope, despair, fond memories with his wife, the two families, our >friends and neighbors, his loving colleagues at Cantor Fitzgerald / ESpeed, >and all the grieving families that daily meet at the Pierre Hotel. > > We see our hurt and anger reflected among everybody we meet. We >cannot pay attention to the daily flow of news about this disaster. >But we read >enough of the news to sense that our government is heading in the direction >of violent revenge, with the prospect of sons, daughters, parents, >friends in distant lands dying, suffering, and nursing further grievances >against us. > It is not the way to go. It will not avenge our son's death. Not in >our son's name. >Our son died a victim of an inhuman ideology. Our actions should not >serve the same purpose. Let us grieve. Let us reflect and pray. Let us >think about a rational response that brings real peace and justice to our >world. But let us not as a nation add to the inhumanity of our times. > > > Copy of letter to White House: > Dear President Bush: > Our son is one of the victims of Tuesday's attack on the World Trade > Center. We read about your response in the last few days and about >the resolutions from both Houses, giving you undefined power to respond >to the terror attacks. > > Your response to this attack does not make us feel better about our >son's death. It makes us feel worse. It makes us feel that our government >is using our son's memory as a justification to cause suffering for >other sons and parents in other lands. > > It is not the first time that a person in your position has been >given unlimited power and came to regret it. This is not the time for empty >gestures to make us feel better. It is not the time to act like bullies. >We urge you to think about how our governement can develop peaceful, >rational solutions to terrorism, solutions that do not sink us to the inhuman >level of terrorists. > Sincerely, >Phyllis and Orlando Rodriguez ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn