The war debate.

• Position: Letters to the Editor

After reading most of the content of the October issue of The Progressive, I began to worry that Christopher Hitchens and I were alone among the community of the left in our views on the events of September 11. After reading Michael Shuman's piece ("Why I Won't Sign," November issue), it is somewhat comforting to know that our number is now at least three.

All of us on the left need to remember that while the remedies put forth by Mr. Bush and the Congress are not perfect, and indeed in some cases create cause for concern, a military response, in this case, was absolutely called for. Some have tried to frame these attacks in the context of American policy in the Middle East. We should not confuse the cause of a Palestinian homeland, and Palestinian nationalists like Yasser Arafat, with Osama bin Laden, the Taliban, and all of their murderous cohorts. Progressives, and leftists, should be solidly behind the cause of bringing these pathetic religious perverts to justice.

Why should any leftist, from any region of the world, indicate any amount of sympathy toward a religious discipline that reduces women to the status of slaves, that denies the freedom of thought and expression, and that punishes "infidels" for not toeing the line of orthodoxy? These people will not keep to their own devices, and they will not simply go away. The worst kind of fanatic is the one who believes that God is on his side. This is true whatever the religion, but is a particular threat in the case of Islam, given the traditional hostility of the United States toward Islamic countries.

However, do not argue that U.S. foreign policy justifies, or explains in any way, the reprehensible acts committed on September 11. And do not delude yourselves that turning the other cheek to these cretins will change them. They will happily slit all our throats, and the progressive values we all hold so dear will be forever lost to us all.

William W. Bennett Lewes, Delaware Terrorism is not something we now fight in rhetoric, but, rather, something we defend ourselves against. It is no longer in words, but in action. Indeed, the news in the papers, on television and radio, and everywhere else we find it is now focused on America's reaction. And this is precisely what scares me. And the problem with reacting, as opposed to acting for justice, is that we tend to rely on might.

The problem with this is that, if you kill one terrorist, the resentment and anger for that one death will...