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Washington

(The writer, a Republican, represents North Carolina's Third Congressional District.)

Keep support coming

Regarding your April 27 article "Military majesty sets tone at parade":

Thank you to the North Carolina supporters who made this day possible as a way to say thank you to our troops for their sacrifices, bravery and dedication. But please continue your support throughout the year of our 200,000+ troops still fighting this war and working to build these countries.

Every week, Give2thetroops provides care packages containing food, toiletries, cards and recreation items to our deployed troops as a way of showing America's appreciation. All businesses, schools, churches and individuals are invited to show their support in this very real way.

You can check us out at our Web site www.give2thetroops.org.

Barbara Whitehead

Ayden

Against the lies

Regarding your April 27 article "Military majesty sets tone at parade":

Our group of protesters at the "Salute to Our Troops" parade in Raleigh supported the troops in the most meaningful way. My sign said "Support Our Troops. Bring Them Home Now!" Several of us are veterans. My son served in the Navy, and I served decades ago in the Israeli military.

We were not against the troops. We were against sending them to die or be maimed in a war based on lies. Far from defending freedom, the war on terror has meant abrogating constitutional freedoms at home, causing our country to be reviled around the world and bringing a multitude of new recruits to al-Qaida. The perpetrators of 9/11 could hardly have hoped for a response better designed to undermine American power and, indeed, our way of life.

Our group distributed a leaflet, "Why We Are Here, Why We Mourn," in which we advocated, instead of saluting the mirage of military might, a parade of those in wheelchairs and on crutches followed by a demand that a sad but grateful nation provide the ongoing care that these young people will need.

Andy Silver

Cary

It's called satire

No, no, no, a thousand times "No!" The April 27 "Angry about Opus" letter-writer recommended banning "Opus" from the Sunday funnies, calling it offensive to women and inappropriate for children.

Now I'm angry and won't take it anymore! To clear up the writer's bafflement, "Opus" has been prominently displayed on the funny pages all these many years because of its exquisite ability to penetrate to core truths of our human existence in a few short words. It's called satire, and nobody does it as well as Berkeley Breathed.

The offending cartoon actually was spotlighting how insidious stereotypes are currently being used for political gain and highlighted the ridiculousness of this stereotyping, since it was, after all, a befuddled obese penguin delivering the message.

As for children, granted, the word uterus doesn't often make its way into "Family Circus," but how long do children need to mature before they can learn from whence they were anatomically thrust into this ultimate human satire called life?

Bob Flagg

Durham

Comic relief

As a fan of Berkeley Breathed's for 25 years and as a fellow Libertarian, I must write to defend him and the "Opus" cartoon strip.

My question to the April 27 writer angry about "Opus": What is offensive about the truth? In fact, the word (shhhh -- I won't say it!) that so offended her is credited to Hippocrates, the father of medicine! So the April 20 strip was dealing with an uncomfortable truth. Dealing with uncomfortable truths with humor, sarcasm and satire is the job of the humorist, of the cartoonist. These are the people who, by their art, struggle to keep our society sane and open to individual ideas.

Pulitzer Prize winners like Breathed keep us free! (A Sousa march plays in the background.) Those who are angered by the likes of "Opus" should turn that anger toward examining their own issues with free expression and try to develop a sense of humor!

I suggest a regimen of watching at least one Monty Python movie per week until you find yourself laughing.

Rich Cregar

Clayton

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