Editor,
Just out of curiosity, how many more pieces of anti-American propaganda from expatriate alumnus Keith Hammar does the Daily Lobo intend to publish?
As someone who earned a degree in journalism at this very University, I fully understand the urge to print both sides of the story. In most cases, I would wholeheartedly agree.
In this instance however, what you're doing is enabling the spread of propaganda originating from the communist government in Beijing. It's bad enough that we finance their murderous regime through our purchases of cheap consumer goods; do we really need to help them spread their disinformation, as well?
Hammar's most recent screed is so full of inaccuracies, lies and just plain stupidity that I would have assumed it to be a parody, had it come from anyone else. For example, he asserts that a top-secret document recently leaked to the press regarding potential nuclear targets indicates some sort of policy change on our part. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
Having spent the better part of 20 years working in the nuclear weapons arena to one extent or another, I can assure him - and his puppet-masters in Beijing - that the United States has never had a "no first strike" policy regarding nuclear weapons. I can also assure him that China has long been considered a potential nuclear target, particularly in the event of an invasion of Taiwan.
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Perhaps the most ironic - or maybe just pathetic - claim in Hammar's letter is that the United States is pursuing the development of a missile defense system for the purpose of "blackmailing" China over Taiwanese independence. Considering the fact that China currently has some 350 short-range nuclear missiles aimed at Taiwan's "troublemaking secessionist elements," one might be tempted to wonder just who is blackmailing whom?
Mr. Hammar, the next time you meet with your handlers, you should give them a message: Taiwan is a free, democratic society. Its people have no desire to be "reunited" with the communist "motherland," and any attempt on China's part to reclaim the island by force will be met with equal - and probably much greater - force on our part.
In conclusion, I sincerely hope the Chinese government isn't depending on Keith Hammar for insights into how Americans think. If they are, they should ask for their money back.
Jeffrey Gunn
Graduate student in public administration
