Letters to the editor

Sanctions ineffective threats against Iran

To the editor:

Iran is a dangerous country with a leader who wants to take the Persian state further into Roguesville, but killing the people of Iran will not solve our problems. Iran has stated that it is not afraid of sanctions issued by the United States or the United Nations, and I'm pretty sure it's not bluffing.

Let me first disagree with Pellicio's statement that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is more dangerous and irrational than North Korean president Kim Jong Il -- a madman classified with Stalin and Hitler as one of the most deadly dictators in the twentieth century.

In the last decade, Il, unlike President Ahmadinejad, has slaughtered entire North Korean villages, killed countless American soldiers in an effort to win the Korean War, and would rather build up his nuclear weapon arsenals, which are pointed directly at the United States, than feed his own people.

But let's assume Pellicio is correct. When we sanction Iran, Ahmadinejad will see his own people die before any of his plans for world domination are at all inconvenienced. He will then blame the United States, Israel and the United Nations for the death of hundreds, maybe thousands, and he will not lose a wink of sleep.

As students of Santa Clara, we should create plans of progress and abandon those of death, destruction and ultimate failure. Sanctions hurt the poor, the weak and the majority. They do not cripple a government, but beat the already crippled to a pulp.

Our reaction to sanctions should be similar to our response to that annoying person who repeats himself in a game of Pictionary: It's a cat. A cat. Is it a cat? Cat. We must say, "It didn't work the last 20 times, why would it be correct today?"

Joshua Crosson

Political science '06

Bring back the squirrels

To the editor:

In solidarity with Jasper Seldin's call for a return of the squirrel in The Santa Clara's cartoons, a local squirrel and some fellow SCCAPers have joined his call to action. Landis, please bring back the squirrels!

Patrick Green, SCCAP department

coordinator; and Meghan Hennessey,

SCCAP co-director