Dear Editor,
The Daily Mississippian columnist Whitney Greer’s column on Guantanamo unfortunately substitutes a good deal of bombast (“reign of incompetence,” “liberal US propaganda machine”) for the kind of hard headed, mutually respectful dialogue the Ole Miss creed is meant to encourage. First off, nobody I know wishes to set the guilty free. Nor do we — in a shocking attack on our patriotism — worry more about Guantanamo Jihadists than our troops, now in their twelfth year or war. Personally, I see no contradiction between killing an armed Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan and feeding Jihadists who have surrendered, and I certainly do wish Mos Def (whoever he is) to represent my position.
Instead, folks like me believe both in the right of the accused to trial and the strategic and economic benefits of closing Guantanamo. We recognize the difficulties involved, but would like to see these debated in a manner more in keeping with the intellectual standards of this university’s community.
Peter K. Frost
Visiting Professor
Croft Institute
