MB Civic

To the Editor:

Re “Where’s the Beef?” (column, May 11):

Bob Herbert put his finger squarely on the challenge we face today as a nation. The electorate is poised to effect a sea change in the deteriorated political landscape: the huge baby boom cohort has come of age, former Bush supporters are disaffected, the Kerry voters of 2004 are hungry for change.

But where are the leaders? The current administration illustrates our desperate need for courageous moral and ethical leadership. Fear of taking a stand cost the Democrats the last presidential election.

Consider the domestic and global issues that must be addressed now. The Democrats cannot afford to make the same mistake again.

Wendy M. Geringer
Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y., May 11, 2006

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To the Editor:

As Bob Herbert so eloquently points out, it is imperative that the Democrats get over their fear and finally begin to fight back.

As a longtime liberal Democrat, I am frustrated with the lack of leadership and courage in the party. I believe that Americans have wised up and are finally fed up with the corruption and failed policies of the Bush administration.

It is now or never. It’s time to speak out and speak up for the values that most of us hold dear and that our democracy was built upon. When attacked by the right wing, don’t back down and don’t waffle.

As Mr. Herbert advises, tell the truth: that it is un-American to spy on our citizens, to torture, to go to war based on deceit, to promote policies that benefit the wealthy and hurt the poor, and to attempt to undermine the Constitution.

Call yourself a liberal, and be proud of it.

Cindy Harden
Brooklyn, May 11, 2006

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To the Editor:

The problem isn’t the Democrats’ inability to find a message. It’s the American public’s inability to face up to the truth.

For a long time, truth tellers risked being framed and narrated out of the picture, with maybe a little ridicule and scorn thrown in for good effect.

Jimmy Carter tried to tell us that the energy crisis was a situation akin to war. Al Gore tried to tell us that we had to take care of the earth before it turns on us. Look what happened to them.

The Bush propaganda machine won because it knew how to manipulate a public that hears what it wants to hear. Look what’s happened to us.

When Americans are ready to hear the truth, they’ll get a leader who tells it to them. Let’s hope it’s not too late to matter.

Jeanne Wilkinson
Brooklyn, May 12, 2006