. 

Personal Sacrifice In Congress?

Of the 535 members of the U.S. House and Senate, only one has a child or grandchild in military service

In her letter Feb. 2, "Congress, lead by example," Karen Harris asks "how many of those (in Congress) favoring war have children or grandchildren . . . (who) would be in the front lines if Iraq becomes a battleground?" Good question. The answer, apparently, is none.

Columnist Armstrong Williams recently reported that of the 535 members of the U.S. House and Senate, only one has a child or grandchild in military service. Sen. Tim Johnson, D-S.D., has a son in the Army serving in Afghanistan.

Vice President Dick Cheney, who took multiple Vietnam-era student deferments, has three granddaughters. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld (like President Bush a stateside pilot in the Vietnam War) has three children and five grandchildren.

Secretary of State Colin Powell has two grandsons. Except for Powell, none of these men has directly experienced war.

Apparently the Iraq war will be fought not by the children or grandchildren of the president, his Cabinet members or Congress, but by the children and grandchildren of other, "lesser" citizens.

Marcus Smith

New Orleans