A PILOT’S STORY
“What a thrilling event: heroic Captain O’Grady and his courageous rescuers. Make room for the real thing, Schwarzenegger and Willis!” Cleary Hinton Lake Charles, Louisiana
Congratulations to Captain Scott O’Grady [COVER STORY, June 19] on keeping his cool and doing the right things in Bosnia after he was shot down. What he did was what he had been trained to do, and he is a credit to the military. The procedures that O’Grady followed after he got on the ground were similar to the steps I took almost 51 years ago when I evaded capture in the same general area. They worked then, and still do today. In 1944 it took 13 days to extract three of us from among my crew, but then we had no radios or helicopters. O’Grady survived in a very hostile area, and fully deserves the accolades given him. Harry D. Whye, Colonel, U.S.A.F. (ret.) Bellevue, Nebraska
Like everyone else, I am relieved that there was no loss of life during O’Grady’s ordeal and rescue. However, I agree with the captain in asking for recognition for the many other pilots and service personnel who continue to put their lives on the line for the U.N. peacekeeping effort. What kind of role model is the media presenting to pilots who have the skill-and good fortune-to keep their jets intact and continue flying the same dangerous missions day after day? Get shot down, and you too can have lunch with the President? Alan Cardenas Breckenridge, Colorado
“One amazing kid” is Captain O’Grady. World War II Air Force veterans, rest assured; they do still make ’em like they used to. (T. Sgt.) Frank J. Pagano, U.S.A.F. (ret.) San Rafael, California
To my long list of American heroes I add Captain O’Grady. But he comes only after his parents, who raised a courageous, compassionate, resourceful and quick-witted son. Zan Jedde Haleem Berkeley Lake, Georgia
“A Pilot’s Story” was one of the best. Your writers took me to Bosnia. I was in the dirt, my face down, right along with O’Grady. I was crying with Captain Thomas Hanford when he flew over the Adriatic and heard O’Grady’s radio signal. My heart was pounding along with Marine Sergeant Major Angel Castro’s after the successful chopper rescue. I made the helicopter ride of a lifetime with Marines Paul Bruce and Michael Pevear. And finally, I too smelled the cypress and pine trees of the Dalmatian coast. It made me feel great. Joe Raymond Long Beach, California
While the courage of O’Grady and his rescuers is nothing short of exemplary, let us also express our gratitude for the everyday heroes of the armed forces who have fought to preserve the freedoms many baby boomers and Generation Xers take for granted. Somehow Memorial Day and Veterans Day seem to have woefully little significance to the average American today. We should seek out World War II, Korean War or Vietnam-era veterans. They have their own incredible stories of survival and valor to tell. Ann V. Lombardi Atlanta
Did O’Grady save a nation? did he get a child out of a burning building? Did he even climb a tree to rescue a stranded cat? No. All he did was hide until he could be found. You might call him a smart guy, but not a hero. I am amused at Americans and their ability to worship anything the government decides they should. Wake up! Paul Mankelow Calgary, Alberta
As I read about O’Grady’s escape, I shed tears not only for him but for all the young men who have gone before him and those who will follow after going on dangerous missions. I am the mother of an Air Force pilot. I pray for him fervently because he flies an aircraft from which seat ejection is impossible. Beverly Neuman Paradise, California
O’Grady is yet another victim of the media, which are trying to make a profit from his ordeal. You have pushed him into playing the role of hero, but deep inside he realizes he is not one and is being used. We have lost perspective on what a true hero is. We have many of them, quite a few unrecognized — especially our veterans from Vietnam. Peter Bruchhausen New York City
As an American, I shed a tear over the rescue of O’Grady, just as I would have shed a tear had he not been saved. I have not, however, spilled any tears over all those who have died in Yugoslavia since the war began. Am I strange and heartless, or is the whole world like me? There is no reason for Americans to become involved in what is still a regional conflict (except as part of nato). European leaders are again proving that they were born with a wishbone instead of a backbone. Every second, minute or day the war continues is a crime against humanity. Joel Savitz Leysin, Switzerland
O’Grady’s survival and ultimate rescue are a cool drink of water for the parched throat of American patriotism. Julie Bess Kuk West Burke, Vermont
With all the attention O’Grady is getting, let us not forget the thousands of U.N. peacekeepers and the civilians caught in this war. With all due respect to Captain Scott O’Grady, these troops are in no way less heroic because their ordeal will last not merely for six days but for as long as this war continues. Shawn Tan Singapore
MONEY MAKES A DIFFERENCE
Thank you for the article “Rich Justice, Poor Justice” on the kind of legal defense money can buy [LAW, June 19]. It’s about time someone wrote about the real criminal justice system in America. If O.J. Simpson had been poor, the state of California would have sought the death penalty, and he would already have been executed. Daniel K. Sherwood Wakefield, Massachusetts AOL: DER ANWALT
If Simpson is set free, it will mean either that he is guilty but had a good enough defense to beat the rap or that he is innocent and might have been sentenced to life in prison were it not for a multimillion-dollar legal defense. Once they have been indicted and put on trial, people with limited financial resources stand a good chance of being convicted, even if innocent. Just as the winner of a formal debate is the better debater and is not necessarily the one whose position represents the truth, it seems that American justice depends less on truth and guilt or innocence than on the skills of the litigators. Henry Krochmal Windsor, Connecticut
The public must be made aware that besides cuts in criminal legal services, the loss of civil legal services is also threatened. This would have a devastating effect on families whose only crime is being poor. If these people have nowhere to turn within the civil justice system, we will all be adversely affected. Ree Adler Wyckoff, New Jersey
The American justice system is like the American health-care system: wonderful if you can afford to pay for it. Casar O. Freytes San Antonio, Texas
30,000-YEAR-OLD ART
The discovery of the sophisticated cave paintings in the south of France and the announcement that they are the oldest ever found should indeed throw “the entire notion of progressive artistic development into question,” as suggested by a French official [SCIENCE, June 19]. Anthropology will remain in the kindergarten of its understanding of man and his works until it comes to grips with the prospect that if the flood of Noah was the one responsible for the sinking of the continent of Atlantis, then the survivors (who may well have been forced to live in caves) were the remnants of a mighty civilization. These would have been people who were unable to pass their advanced science and culture on to the generations that followed. This is what could be expected to happen following a nuclear holocaust. Betty J. Manhart Emigrant, Montana
Perhaps a Picasso comes along only once every 30,000 years. Innate talent is one of the many exciting and wonderful qualities of the family of man. Nancy Sprague La Grange, Illinois
TALKING BACK TO ZEDILLO
Regarding your talk with Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo [INTERVIEW, June 19], I would ask if he is living in the same politically corrupt, crime-ridden, economically bankrupt country as I am. Or is he living in paradise with Alice in Wonderland? Come on, Mr. President, face reality: your five-year economic plan is a pipe dream. Get real. Talk to the people, not just to the sycophants who surround you and live in luxury. Luis C. Calvillo Mexico City
LEE’S VISIT TO THE U.S.
In response to China’s anger over the visit to the U.S. of Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui [CHRONICLES, June 19], I would note that China’s policy toward Taiwan reminds me of Hitler’s attitude toward Austria. To help China grow up does not mean we have to agree to appeasement. History has proved that 21 million free people cannot be forced to submit to hegemonic demands. Taiwan should not be sacrificed to the big powers’ “strategic interest.” Winston Lynn Sydney, Australia
ncG1vNJzZmismaKyb6%2FOpmaaqpOdtrexjm9ua29mZ35wuMStq56qo2K3triMamdmaWlugnA%3D