Iraq not a 'needless war'

The Oregonian

A letter writer, Steven Kunert, wrote, "This administration sent our soldiers into a needless war to live it, and too many have died in it" ("Military morale wounded," June 2). I am one of those who lived it.

I went into Iraq in March 2003 and was in one of the first groups to set foot on what was Saddam International Airport. Before we went into Iraq we listened to the BBC reports on the radio, and I have been told that news stations here in the States confirmed that vehicles came into Iraq and cleared out not only the weapons that were waiting to be destroyed by the United Nations but also three other sites, then went out through Iran and Syria.

Even if there was nothing there, can you tell me that stopping an evil dictator and his henchmen from raping and torturing children is wrong? I helped to free hundreds of children from torture chambers. Their bodies had electrical burns all over them and they had experienced horrors too bad to describe. After looking into their eyes, I can't believe this is a needless war.

As for the second part of that comment, what is an acceptable number of fallen soldiers?

The point of Kunert's letter was about the morale of the troops. It doesn't help morale to tell us we saw our friends die for nothing or to hear members of Congress call us names simply because we support freedom, not just for Americans but for all who can't fight for themselves. ...