To the Editor:
Re “After the War on Terror,” by Roger Cohen (column, The New York Times on the Web, Jan. 29):
I was elated to read about President Obama’s abandonment of the post-9/11 Bush doctrine. Targeting terrorist organizations instead of everyone who disagrees with us is a giant step forward toward living in a diverse world.
I think that “war on terror” was a terrible misnomer. It perpetuated the idea that we could keep ourselves safe by dominating the world with our military might. There is no doubt that we have the greatest military force in the world, but the insidious terrorist attacks of 9/11 were perpetrated by 19 guys with box cutters, backed by a terrorist organization.
President George W. Bush tried to convince Americans that he was the only person tough enough to keep us safe. But President Obama will not be baited into name-calling and continues to listen to what the other guy has to say—as long as he doesn’t say it with violence. That is real toughness!
Don R. Catherall
LaGrange, Ill., Jan. 29, 2009
Note from KBJ: President Bush targeted "everyone who disagrees with us"?
