I would like to address the letter from Mary Jane Newell (July 17). I have read her attacks on liberalism patiently, and I have come to the conclusion that Newell likes to paint liberals with a very wide brush.

She also sees dissenting views as an unpatriotic and disrespectful act when, in fact, the opposite is the case. The right of the people to question their government is the cornerstone of any free society.

Liberals, she states, were responsible for our loss in the Vietnam War because of anti-war marches, etc., when in fact, it was a “defensive” war fueled by greedy corporations seeking to cash in on government contracts. If we had any intention of winning in Vietnam, then why did we never invade North Vietnam? Why, because corporate giants like General Electric were making money hand-over-fist while American soldiers and innocent civilians lost their lives. I remember it well: My father made aircraft engines for GE during the war. Ending the war would have stopped the government gravy train. Sound familiar? Hello, Halliburton?

The Iraq war is nothing more than a rich kid’s personal grudge against Saddam Hussein, and that grudge has cost about 900 soldiers and sailors their lives, not to mention countless civilians. It’s not personal? Then why is Saddam’s pistol in Bush’s private study?

My husband and I fly our flag proudly, as do other liberals that we know.

Kate Cooper, Livermore