Sheehan and Clinton.

• Position: Letter to the editor

The letters in the June issue critical of Cindy Sheehan are likely indicative of sentiment among Democratic Party loyalists. It's unfortunate that Sheehan lost support, not for changing her anti-war message, but for pointing out the obvious: The military occupation of Iraq is bipartisan.

The use of our military for aggression that has resulted in more than 600,000 dead Iraqi civilians is the primary moral question of politics today. To Cindy Sheehan, an antiwar stance is not secondary to politics. Ending the war is a more serious endeavor than choosing sides in a political sporting event.

Thank you for the article on Mike Gravel. He and Dennis Kucinich are the two real peace candidates in the Democratic field. Rather than marginalize them in a horse race mentality that puts principles aside, let us support such populists and give truth a chance.

Bernard Dalsey

Whitewater, Wisconsin

Some of your letter writers in the June issue seem to think they've been reading The Democrat rather than The Progressive .

Am I to believe that after years of union-busting on the board of Wal-Mart, approving preemptive war, cheerleading while Israel bombed civilians in Lebanon, and now saber-rattling at Iran, Hillary Clinton deserves a pass from progressives because she's a Democrat? I don't think so.

Brian Fox

Oneonta, New York

As a veteran activist, I can certainly understand Cindy Sheehan's recent decision to step down as de facto figurehead of the Iraq anti-war...