Editor, Daily Nexus,

I am responding to Edward M. Gorenshteyn’s letter titled “Fedayeen Fight for Freedom, Not Hussein” (Daily Nexus, April 4, 2003).

As a former student of UCSB, it is very disappointing to read the uninformed opinions of Gorenshteyn. His belief that the Fedayeen is fighting in a “valiant attempt” to defend its country is simply a distortion of the truth. The Fedayeen was formed by Hussein’s son and was trained to fight solely for the preservation of the regime itself, not for the people of Iraq.

Gorenshteyn’s defense of the Fedayeen soldiers – who wave white flags, fake surrender and then open fire on American soldiers – is unfortunate. The same “valiant” fighters he defends are also the same people who choose to set up base and hide inside of hospitals and schools.

The parallel he attempts to draw between the Fedayeen and the soldiers of the American Revolution is revolting. There is a vast difference between a people who fight for independence from colonial rule and those who choose to fight for a regime that uses torture, rape, murder, and women and children as shields in order to maintain its power.

Finally, Gorenshteyn’s assertion that these soldiers are simply protecting their lives because they are freedom-loving people is misguided at best. No one in Iraq is free; in fact, the only reason the Fedayeen exists today is because Iraq is not free.

I challenge Gorenshteyn to become better informed. It is his lack of any sort of relevant facts that discredits the anti-war movement. I support this war because Gorenshteyn does make one valid point when he states that “any sensible, freedom-loving person would do anything necessary to protect his or her life and the lives of his or her loved ones.”

I argue that is why we are in Iraq today. A democratized Middle East will save lives in this country and protect those who seek freedom in Iraq and elsewhere. If he would like to study an example of the successes of democracy in the Muslim world I would ask him to look to India, the biggest Muslim nation in the world that is free of terrorism and extremism.