To the editor:

A recent Journal-World editorial (“Hogwash,” March 22) takes columnist Leonard Pitts to task for writing, “The country for which the world wept in September of 2001 is now the country much of the world fears. For many people, the most dangerous man on the planet is not Saddam, but Bush.” The editorial calls this “vitriolic, bitter bile” and states that Pitts “should have had the courage to say of Bush that this is his opinion, if that’s the case, rather than trying to hide behind a phony generalization that it is the belief of ‘many people.'”

But Pitts is right and he is offering a simple statement of fact. Many people around the world — and not just those who actively hate us — are afraid that Bush’s actions may lead to global instability and an increased (and even more hateful) division between us and substantial parts of the rest of the world.

Irrespective of how one feels about the war, it is counterproductive to hide from the truth that many people, both here and around the world, think that Bush’s actions are extremely dangerous. Perhaps his style and his gambles will pay off, but the risks are high, and the long-term price to be paid could turn out to be much higher than the short-term gains.

Leonard Pitts correctly points this out. The Journal-World is wrong to be so contemptuous of his comments.

Jack Krebs,

Lawrence