To the editor:

Couched in the July 10 Saturday Column were several traditional negative attitudes toward those who would attempt to make educated and well-reasoned decisions about two important topics, the long-term war on terrorism and America’s dependence on foreign energy sources.

First, the writer questions how Americans might respond to a future terrorist attack: “Will U.S. citizens panic and try to appease terrorists by changing government leadership as was done in Spain?” This presumes that there is no reason except panic to cause us to change leadership. Actually there are many reasons, including the fact that the Bush administration has bungled America’s war on terrorism and made the fight much more difficult and costly for us all.

Second, the barbed observation about opponents to Flint Hills wind energy development and the question “How long will certain areas of the United States be off-limits for new oil exploration and drilling?” imply that those who wish to find environmentally healthy energy alternatives are obstructionists. Actually, ecologists and enlightened citizens have been warning government officials for over 30 years of the impending depletion of the earth’s fossil fuel reserves and pressing for environmentally friendly alternatives. But, the political and private powers-that-be, including the oil industry so well represented in Washington, have long obstructed policies promoting energy conservation and research and development of alternative energy sources.

Now that they have finally decided to heed the warning, we citizens mustn’t panic and let them irrevocably destroy our natural environments to get more quick and dirty energy.

Sharon Dewey,

Lawrence