Letters

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"The battle for Fallujah has reduced another city to rubble and increased the hatred of the U.S. among ordinary Iraqis."
JEAN WALTRIP
Rocky Mount, Va.

LATEST COVER STORY Mind & Body Happiness Jan. 17, 2004 Past Issues Tsunami Jan. 10, 2004 ----------------- Person of the Year Jan. 3, 2004 ----------------- Secrets of the Nativity Dec. 13, 2004 ----------------- The Stealth Killer Dec. 6, 2004 ----------------- Coolest Inventions Nov. 29, 2004 ----------------- Battle for Fallujah Nov. 22, 2004 ----------------- Four More Years Nov. 15, 2004 ----------------- The Joy Of Sox Nov. 8, 2004 ----------------- The Morning After Nov. 1, 2004 ----------------- The God Gene Oct. 25, 2004 ----------------- The Vote Battle Oct. 18, 2004 ----------------- Visions of Tomorrow Oct. 11, 2004 ----------------- The Tragedy of Sudan Oct. 4, 2004 ----------------- CBS Controversy Sept. 27, 2004 ----------------- America's Border Sept. 20, 2004 ----------------- Struggle Within Islam Sept. 13, 2004 ----------------- World of George Bush Sept. 6, 2004 -----------------   SPECIAL REPORTS  Coolest Video Games 2004  Coolest Inventions  Wireless Society  Cool Tech 2004 PHOTOS AND GRAPHICS  At The Epicenter  Paths to Pleasure  Quotes of the Week  This Week's Gadget  Cartoons of the Week More graphics >> More photos >> MORE STORIES Advisor: Rove Warrior The Bushes: Family Dynasty Klein: Benneton Ad Presidency More Stories >> CNN.com: Latest News

Your report on the full-scale assault to take back Fallujah from the insurgents [Nov. 22] reminds me of the Vietnam-era axiom: "We had to destroy the village in order to save it." Although reconstruction is supposed to begin as soon as we pacify the Fallujah cauldron, attempts at such rebuilding in the rest of Iraq have shown that it is impossible to begin the work and spend the budgeted money because of the lack of security for work crews. What contractor on earth would want to undertake such risks to work in Fallujah, the most dangerous place in Iraq?
DAVE WATTERS
Wyoming, Ohio

The battle for Fallujah has reduced another city to rubble and increased the hatred of the U.S. among ordinary Iraqis. I see no way out of this mess, short of leaving the country to its own devices. Then, of course, another dictator will take over, or a civil war will begin. The U.S. has no legitimate role in the Middle East. If we need Iraq's oil, we can bid for it on the world market. Our interference in the region has been counterproductive. There will be no scattering of rose petals for Americans, but there will be many more deaths of our troops and of Iraqis too. Show me the moral value in that.
JEAN WALTRIP
Rocky Mount, Va.

Why didn't you devote more reporting to the terrible suffering of the city's residents, in particular women and children? Perhaps you are afraid people will criticize the brutality of the American troops.
ANN SALVADORI
London

TIME's cover showed a Marine corporal, face tense and most likely screaming some command to his subordinates while fighting insurgents in Iraq. I feel terrible about what's happening in the war, but I am losing interest in the day-to-day combat. Have the media lulled me into acceptance of casualties?
JUMPER LAFAYETTE
Crownsville, Md.

Time and time again I am amazed by the quality of reporting by Australian journalist Michael Ware, who has tirelessly covered the war on terrorism for TIME in very difficult, trying and dangerous circumstances. We must pay tribute to remarkable people like Ware who continually provide us with gritty, quality journalism directly from the front lines.
NICK SMART
Gold Coast, Australia

The Legacy of Arafat

Whatever view one takes of the long struggle between Palestinians and Israelis, a kernel of truth concerning that conflict can be glimpsed from two details of Yasser Arafat's illness and death [Nov. 22]. His people had to take him to another country for decent medical care, and they had to ask Israel, his lifelong enemy, for permission to return his body for burial in Ramallah in the West Bank. Can you imagine an Israeli Prime Minister being put in the same position? Until the fundamental economic and political inequalities that lie behind such contrasts are corrected, there is little hope for peace in that blood-smeared region.
WILLIAM P. REICH
Evanston, Ill.

If there had been no Arafat, we would not have suicide bombers or the suspicion of terrorism in every public place in the world. Would Osama bin Laden have masterminded the 9/11 attacks without Arafat's having led the way? Doubtful. All citizens of the Western world (not just Israelis) should remember Arafat and the terrorist acts he inspired every time they have to go through a metal detector or take their shoes off to get on an airplane.
MARK FELD
New York City