Aiding the axis of evil. (Letters to the Editor).

Now wait a minute! The subtitle to William Norman Grigg's article "Aiding and Abetting the 'Axis'" in the February 24th issue of THE NEW AMERICAN states: "Even as he prepares to mount an unnecessary war against a prostrate Iraq, President Bush is offering critical aid to Saddam's more dangerous axis-mate, North Korea." Another portion of the article states, "Crippled by the 1991 UN-led Gulf War, intermittent bombings by U.S. and British aircraft, and 12 years of devastating sanctions, Saddam's military poses little threat to Iraq's neighbors, let alone the United States." The article then basically goes on to say that we shouldn't be so worried about Iraq anymore, but turn our attention toward North Korea, another member of President Bush's "axis of evil."

Now this is all well and good; I have no love for either country or the despots who run them. Intelligent Americans who read magazines such as THE NEW AMERICAN have understood this years before the establishment media chose to make an issue of it.

However, isn't THE NEW AMERICAN the magazine that warned us about Middle Eastern aggression, fomented by our "allies" the "former" Soviet Union and the still-Communist People's Republic of China? Isn't it THE NEW AMERICAN that exposed the possible Middle Eastern links to the OKC bombing of the Murrah building, and the possible threat of chemical warfare and even "dirty" nuclear devices being set off by Middle Eastern "sleeper" agents in the U.S.? Agents of which Saddam, though he might not be alone in their organization, is one of the key players behind them?

Granted, I am not fond of how our president is bending over backwards in seeking the approval of the world (which he lost by failure to act decisively sooner), as well as using the World Trade Center tragedy as an excuse to make the UN "relevant" and throwing his constitutionally granted powers (as well as Congress and the Senate) out the window! I live in New York City, and personally it would give me great pleasure to see the whole UN crowd of subversive, godless Communists kicked out of our country and sent to a country that would make a far better host nation -- I would suggest France as the most likely candidate!

I agree that this country should not finance North Korea, or any other country, especially when our own country is falling apart economically. However, do we now have the attention spans of childish liberals that we must turn away from one threat to focus on another? Another thing THE NEW AMERICAN has warned its readers about over and over again is how our military has been gutted and cut to the bone by previous presidents and liberals in Congress, and how the United States no longer can afford or is capable of taking on two rogue nations at one time.

I am not saying that North Korea is not a serious concern. Of course it is. But are you now saying that Iraq and Middle Eastern terrorist organizations are just cannon balls of fluff that should be ignored and that we should now concentrate only on North Korea?

ROBERT SUTTILE

Brooklyn, New York 

William Norman Grigg responds: While the regimes ruling Iraq, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and China are significant potential threats, it has always been our position that we should concentrate primarily on the actions of our rulers, particularly when (as in this case) those actions are impossible to reconcile with their announced intentions.

We drew attention to the Bush administration's perverse policy toward North Korea in order to underscore the abject phoniness of the "war on terrorism." This potently illustrates why it's unwise to trust the administration's judgment as it directs public focus toward whatever "enemy" the power elite has chosen at any given time.

Our position has been entirely consistent. We should be willing and prepared to defend ourselves against threats from any potential enemy, and our government must spare no lawful effort (including, if necessary, prosecuting a just war under legitimate constitutional authority) to find and punish those responsible for terrorist acts against Americans. And, of course, we must find terrorist cells within our country, and regain control over our borders. None of these objectives is being served by the Bush administration's policies toward Iraq and North Korea.