To the editor:

Richard Smith’s letter “Annoying protest” seems to share the sentiment of many confused and hypocritical Americans. These people seem to believe that protesting the government is unpatriotic. Yet if the subject were changed to abortion or some other topic, they would be out on the streets shouting at the sky. They don’t realize that protesting the government is not only our right, but it is our duty.

They also see those that are protesting as “the lowest common denominator.” Yet they make completely irrelevant and idiotic statements claiming the impossible, such as “Hussein’s nukes loaded with the smallpox virus.” Apparently President Bush’s nonsense propaganda has influenced some of the less educated Americans.

These people also share in the belief that somehow protesting war is disrespectful to the military and those that have fought and died for our right to protest. That belief could not be any further from the truth. We protest because we want to stop the unnecessary cycle of violence that causes people to have to go out and fight. We are NOT protesting the military, we are protesting sending the military out to fight and die for a cause that President Bush has not proven is worth the lives of our men and women and the countless innocents killed in battle. To me, that is about as patriotic as one can be.

Brandon Nightingale,

Lawrence