Ambrose wrong on war's critics

Jay Ambrose's Jan. 10 commentary, “Critics of a surge want to surrender,” has just about everything wrong, starting with the headline. Surrender is what you do when you are overwhelmed, facing certain death. It involves disarming, paying reparations and removal of the defeated government with a new one provided by the victor. Last I checked, we aren't mothballing our Navy, paying reparations to the Baathists, or changing our government to comply with the “victor's” demands. Iraqis have seen we didn't really bring democracy. We decided former Baathists couldn't be part of the new Iraq. We decided that Shiite clerics like Muqtada al-Sadr couldn't be part of the government. Only U.S. supporters need apply. Since the surge is so important and Ambrose supports it, I wonder why he is writing his column? Isn't there an Army recruitment office near him? Sacrifices still need to be made, and he could be one of them. The president has decided that the Iraqi insurgents need a few more targets. His belief in sacrifice reminds me of something Mark Twain said of charity. When asked if he was in favor of charity, Twain answered: “Is that giving or getting?” For the president, sacrifice is something that someone else does. Bob Filipczak, Linwood - Atlantic City Press, January 22, 2007