Letters to the Editors

USF faculty is misguided in backing Al-Arian

I'm tired of hearing how University of South Florida professor Sami Al-Arian's "academic freedom" is being violated. The faculty at USF is "outraged"? Well, so am I.

Why is it that the so-called intellectuals and academia are more concerned with their misguided endorsement of this man, than they are with doing what is right for their school, their country and the safety of its citizens? It is quite obvious that Al-Arian's allegiance is not with the United States or its policies. He has chosen not to become a citizen and is always arrogant and belligerent whenever he is challenged about his questionable activities. He is a master at playing the "academic freedom" card and has been using the university to spread his ideological propaganda, and in so doing, has betrayed the trust that the school placed in him.

There are far too many coincidences in his past for even the most naive to ignore. There is a difference between defending academic and intellectual freedom, and blindly supporting an Islamic extremist. The support for Al-Arian is nothing more than political correctness. No one can convince me otherwise.

If an American were teaching at a Middle Eastern university and used his position to promote American or Israeli policies, academic freedom would be the least of his worries. Our freedoms separate us from most of the rest of the world. However, we have an obligation to use them as our forefathers intended, and not allow them to be twisted by people like Al-Arian and used against us. This country is facing the greatest challenge in its history, and the least that the intellectual community can do is come down from their ivory towers and politically correct bandwagons and join the rest of us in supporting it.
-- Larry McClain, Wesley Chapel

Academic arrogance

Re: Faculty leaders refuse to back Al-Arian firing, Jan. 10.

Unbridaled liberalism appears to reign supreme at the University of South Florida. The issue seems more a case of academic arrogance rather than the posed red herring of academic freedom. It is easy to tire of the whining of the elitists in academia who seem to be much more concerned with their dubious right to do as they "damn well please" than with the safety of the student body they are there to serve.

In the name of the academic freedom of the student body, the payers of tuition (be they students or parents) should be provided a list of the faculty members who support Al-Arian so they can decide whether or not to spend good tuition dollars on teachers whose judgment may be questionable.
-- Martin Gavlak, Dunedin

Academic freedom has limits

I am upset with the heavy thinkers at the University of South Florida who feel that professor Sami Al-Arian should not be terminated for making inflammatory statements such as "death to Israel."

If a professor, who happened to be a member of the Ku Klux Klan, demanded that "N------ be lynched," would that be defended as academic freedom?

Academic freedom does not allow a professor to shout "Fire" in a crowded movie theater, and the sooner that the faculty at USF comes to understand the difference the better off they and the students they are indoctrinating will be.
-- Bob Neuhardt, Tampa

Genshaft did the right thing

Re: Sami Al Arian.

He should be deported immediately. Tying up the court system and using taxpayer dollars in this case would be wrong. If this case does come to court, I feel sure it will be used as a platform to expound views that 98 percent of Americans do not agree with.

University of South Florida president Judy Genshaft is to be commended for her decision.
-- Dave Newell, Largo

Standing up for principle

Re: Adviser protests Al-Arian decision, Jan. 4.

Congratulations to Dr. Elizabeth Bird for having the courage to stand up for her principles. At no small cost to herself, Dr. Bird made a strong public statement against the manner in which USF handled the controversy over Dr. Sami Al-Arian's appearance on Fox Television. Hopefully her actions help call attention to the flagrant breach of due process in the firing of Dr. Al-Arian, and to the perilous precedent set by these ill-fated actions.

She has my full support, and I hope that more of our faculty will feel empowered, in light of her courage, to speak out in support of Dr. Al-Arian's right to hold his views and to express them. All of us are in danger of being silenced by these events, whatever our political views, and USF is in danger of being doomed to obscurity as professors and students of principle decide to go to universities where debate is encouraged, not silenced.

Indeed, the purpose of a university community is to foster debate of ideas. We cannot be afraid of public opinion, of our donors' political leanings or of the conclusions we may reach in our discussions, if we are to be of service to our society.
-- Dr. Rebecca Johns, assistant professor, USF-St. Petersburg

Propaganda damages U.S. credibility

Re: The phony bin Laden photo, editorial, Jan. 9.

Thank you for speaking out against the use of propaganda by the United States. As a former U.S. Marine, I was shocked to learn that we are engaging in such behavior. This behavior is very damaging to our credibility around the world and is fodder to every two-bit bully dictator who dismisses truthful information publicized by our government as "U.S. propaganda" to his people.

This behavior takes the United States down to the levels of our enemies. They have to use propaganda to achieve their goals because they do not have the truth on their side. We, on the other hand, have the truth on our side. We don't have to fabricate anything.

What I find even more troublesome is the lack of public outcry over such behavior. I mentioned my distaste for this behavior to several colleagues at work, and they bent over backward to defend these actions. This is evidence of a much more serious problem, which is blind nationalistic patriotism. I love my country and consider myself a patriot, but I refuse to give our leadership a blank check. We must support our leadership while holding them accountable at the same time. This is crucial for democracy to work.

Thank you for your editorial outcry on this matter. I was beginning to wonder if I was the only one offended by this behavior.
-- David Douglas, Bradenton

Don't let people starve to death

Re: Waiting to die and For dinner, just grass and flour, Jan. 8.

I was deeply saddened to read of the plight of the people of Abdullah Gan, Afghanistan, who are dying of hunger. The humanitarian crisis there, in other parts of Afghanistan, and, indeed, in many parts of the world is intolerable given the resources and technology the developed world can use to end the hunger and suffering so many endure. Can we as American parents and grandparents imagine watching our children die before our eyes because there is literally no food? I have seen children in Central Africa trying to survive on edible grasses; it is not a sight one forgets.

The article states that the World Food Program has moved food to the area but aid organizations do not have the security necessary to distribute it. I suggest the United States should solve the logistical problems that prevent moving that food and use our resources and technology to assist in distribution.

"It would cost $10 a bag to haul the food into the villages," states the report. What a small amount to save these people from starvation!
-- Luella B. Chatters, Dunedin

Taking a stand against animal abuse

Re: Shooting two bulls gets teen 10 years, Jan. 11.

Finally a judge has made a stand against cruelty to animals and has set a precedent that will add respect for the law.

For too long animal abuse has gone unpunished. People walk away with a slap on the wrist and the abuser goes on to harm more innocent beings, human beings.

Abuse is aimed at all species. It is the act that must be resolved. Paying a light fine and being under house arrest just won't cut it.

To watch the videotape of a young man with no remorse bragging about violence is a mirror image of our failure in society to stop this growing problem. Our children carry guns, torture animals, fly planes into buildings and kill their friends. Parents need to take a long, hard look at their responsibility and stop hiring attorneys to come up with ludicrous rationalizations. Acne medicine won't help this case either.
-- Louise Kahle, St. Petersburg

Don't ridicule estate planning for pets

Re: Sour Orange Awards, Dec. 31.

We're confused. What was the point of awarding the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals a "Sour orange" for hosting a free estate-planning seminar? And why label the organization's effort as "futile: an act which, no matter how you look at it, makes absolutely no sense."

Since it was impossible to know the writer's intent from the Times' article, we surmised the following:

Perhaps the writer intended to point out the futility of holding estate-planning seminars in general. If that's the case, why are so many for-profit and nonprofit organizations holding estate-planning seminars? More important, why are so many people of all ages attending them.

Maybe the writer's point was that the act of making provisions for pets via wills, trusts and estate plans is "futile."

We don't think this could be the point because less than a week later the Times gave a great deal of ink to a story regarding how more and more pet owners are using estate planning to make sure their pets' lives are good after the owners are gone (Don't worry, Fido; you're in the will, Jan. 6).

Maybe the writer just found it "futile" that the SPCA, an animal welfare organization that takes in between 14,000 to 17,000 homeless pets annually, would aspire to change those numbers by educating more people concerning how to make better plans for their pets.

Or maybe he just wanted to use his catchy headline -- "My dog insists I go" -- and gave no deep thought to the value the SPCA might be providing the public in offering estate planning seminars.

If that's the case, we can only hope that more dogs will insist their owners go to upcoming SPCA seminars. We offer a series of seminars every year. Visit our Web site at www.spcaofpinellas.org for times and dates.
-- Nora Hawkins, marketing director, SPCA of Pinellas County, Largo

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