European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - July 31, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 10 the stars and strip col. North does t deserve hero Label 10 of 11 writers say although a lot has been said about the Iran Contra affair especially since it. Col. Oliver North gave his testimony nol enough has been said about the specific Laws that were really does t Mailer what North Hough or assumed was right. Being a senior officer in one or the most prestigious branches of the . Military North should have had enough common sense to know what he was doing was against the Law be it under direct orders from his superiors or otherwise. If the majority of americans really believe that North is an american hero n � very possible that that they must have been asleep in civics classes during their school years. North categorically slated that he under the direct supervision of his superiors was doing democracy a fiver by overstepping the Boland amendment he Congress the american people eve the ones who consider him a her and finally that precious american document which ensures our re Public and differentiates us from every other country in the world the Constitution. In the words of one member of the panel. The participants in this sordid affair used anarchism As the Means for protecting our Labelling North an american hero inc Media certain lawmakers a president and a Good number of americans have contributed greatly 10 the ignorance of our own understanding of our government. Sec. 4 Edward Luu Letb Girmu Bynorth i nol a hero and his recent testimony should not serve As a military role looked very handsome in his uniform. I wonder if he wore in while dealing in illegal activities my training As in officer has taught me to act with integrity and to question orders thai May not be in the Best interest of the army or our nation. North is Quick to a. " was Only carrying Oul our military officers have made significant Progress in regard to values integrity and selfless service Dur ing the last 20 years. Lying cheating and stealing Are not values we teach our we want officers in our military to merely follow order or to acl with a sense of integrity and have the courage to do what is right -cipt.t.c. Smith Funk Germany Ira tale to me is another political show before an election year. It should be something very different. It should address the deplorable condition our govern ment is in and the degradation of a wonderful system of overment by self serving and Deviou leaders. Who cares what happened to the profits the Reagan administration made from the illegal Sale we have enough treachery piled before us aggravated by the fact that people with Power in the United states believe that if they Are Given an order to perform an illegal acl it becomes Legal thus we have a whole history Book of criminals we must forgive. Last month the Stark was hit by the Iraq forces and37 Young americans died. The attack could have come More deliberately from Iran. The attack could have been with arms that our american patriots sold to this enemy. Your son or my son could have died from american arms and May is what Ira Gate should be about. North for president indeed Felix h. A Cinnlt Ari Noab Italy i Don l know oily it sounds like a Good idea but can your arms dealer friends be trusted of yes. Admiral Pointe head they can. Besides they la also set up some interesting kickbacks such As life insurance policies and Security systems. We u come off As super patriots after this is Over. But for now we Don t even have to mention in to Ronnie. If anyone finds out about the Money Well lie falsify and destroy documents and generally cheat. The end justifies the Means we ii get the foreign policy i know we oily you sure re Slick. You get the most mileage out of situation ethics. But what about the various Laws should we be running the government while Ronnie is sleeping through Bunch of arms profile Erst trial s no problem Admiral p. Well play the mar Tyr Roll if we re caught and i can easily con the Public into thinking i m a Nero. Besides if we re caught we ii make millions from Book rights and to talk show. Bui if anyone tries to bring criminal charges against me that s another thing. To Heck with patriotism. 111start pointing fingers at others like Bill. We gotta keep Casper George and the Congress of of the picture though. This kind of operation requires foreign policy smal eurs like , oily 1 approve the plan. The Buck stops with me you know. Have your Good Lookin Secretary bum me a copy of the plan and Well shred it Laler. By the Way How docs a lieutenant colonel gel a gs-9 Secre tary11 you must really be Slick with those co Job classifiers oily. Of Well my be i s Jour Charisma or patriotism or even straight Arrow according to an the Job of the military and Rod civilians is twofold stand ready As a Sci errant Force and 2. To present ourselves to our hosts in a manner conducive to encouraging relations with America. This is becoming awfully hard to do in the Wake of inc current scandal in i was growing up i was Laughl thai to be caught in a lie meant punishment. Similarly Wilh stealing cheating and in general icing a bad Hoy. How will tomorrow s children survive Ellis new Cavalier attitude where these wrongs Are cheered and heroes made who will be their role models these cowboys in Washington should be prosecuted 10 the fullest extent of the Law. I simply do not support these happenings at Home and cannot in Good conscience Lell anyone else that i do either. Conscience. Something altogether missing today. Face it a Myrica we re screwing up. Name withheld stalag Firof course Ollie is a hero to the american people. He has been on nationwide television for four Days. That s More air time a week than or gets. The Ameri can people would think Stalin and Miller were Good old boys if they got the right kind Oft god and his Host of Angels were silting on the congressional committee asking questions Ollie would come out on lop. Me has done what every tax payer and citizen wants to do stick Illo the politicians and on the lube no longer matters what North did. No one cares about the lies the stealing of taxpayers funds the deception and illegal actions. North has been judge where in America it counts More than the supreme court on to. In looks like he came out on top. I wonder How much he is going to get for personal appearances a spot on Johnny s show a Book or How atoll Olli Ebo the real tech . Debts hat bin Traten England for Brief introduction this comment is written by a German citizen of Circhio slovakian Engin Veteran of world War ii former employee of . Farces for 23 years and presently 61 years Osage the undersigned hereby wishes to extend nil per Sonal moral support to a very very courageous Ameri can aware of the magnitude surrounding the con Gressional hearing of North in was Down the heart re freshing to see some faces seated in the upper level of the Congress surprised by some fundamental truths so bravely voiced. Such a rare voice possibly holds the value of historical dimension right or wrong with some of the most outstanding personalities of the demonstrated individual courage undoubtedly is a product of and Merit to a truly free society wit High ideals. A Wake up process such As this hear ing could indeed prove Good Medicine where other efforts in the past have failed. North undoubtedly deserves everyone s High to specs. The subject of the hearing almost becomes a secondary Issue to All those with Good judgment who see priorities one of which is human Nihls. Secondary Are All printed policies All talk which brings Only few worthy results. Hopefully wis Dom will prevail if need be with a double barrelled swarm of Mosquito specially dedicated to men just like bit Egholm Germany. Nicaragua May be of strategic value to us in More ways than one. It is important that the country not fall into the hands of soviet domination or would give an important Edge to the soviets. But just How valuable is this country to us and to whal degree arc we willing to extend our support this is the ques Tion we Are faced with overstepped his authority in his dealings with the iranians and the contras. Congress outlawed Aid to the contras and during this time North raised himself above the Law and set his own Legal boundaries. The Law is the Law there is no Grey area Here and North As Well As adm. John Poindexter should be held Crimi Nally liable for his actions. People Wake up and smell the Coffee do you want figures like these two leading our nation by his own admission North is a liar. What males you think he is telling the truth now with the help of his Secretary he shredded key documents documents that could have Lold the american people whal really happened. These actions alone indicate that North has something to hide and cannot be irus cd. We granted immunity to a military officer. I am in the military too. If i commit a crime do i have the right to demand immunity from Legal liability and Ucma of course nol. Americans there is a lesson to be Learned hire. Arc you willing to entrust your Security to a Man like North his intentions were Good yes but he is not above the Law. We should scrutinize our less cars More closely and we should t be afraid to get involved. Take pen in hand and write to your congressmen to the president to North and let them know what you think. Your opinion is a lot More valuable than you believe. If you Don t gel involved Hen you have Only yourself to blame when issues such As this Nisi Kenneth Hodge suit Nuernberg in response to the article concerning europeans bewilderment Al North s overwhelming popularity in the United Stales i too am bewildered. How does someone who clearly broke the Law be come a hero the Webster dictionary defines hero As a Man admired for his achievements and qualities. If acting in direct Defiance to the Taw for your own per Sonal beliefs is a prerequisite for hero Stalus then i would most definitely be hailed As a Greal Amor for raising a Small army to topple the South african government that May sound extreme but that s the Point i m trying to make. When a Man is Down on his Luck and he robs a Gas station to feed his starving family has he not broken the. Law does this mean that he should be granted limited immunity because what he did can be socially accepted by some of course not regardless of our position in this country we Are All bound by the Constitution and subject to the Laws within it. If North truly believed what he did was night Ihen he would not have asked for any immunity Al All. A True hero would stand by his this new form of patriotism goes unpunished a dangerous precedent will be set for our future military personnel and politicians. Staff sgt Clyde d. Dowell ii Torr Tjada Spain North s recent testimony during the Iran Contr hearings amounted to Lille More than the proverbial Hogwash. With Puppy dog eyes and a Fine stage perform Many. North is trying for a Whitewash of his role in the scandal. He would have us believe that deceiving Congress and the american Public misleading administration officials setting up secret funds Wilh no Means of accountability and shredding documents As part of cover up were All perfectly acceptable activities. 1 feel North should be prosecuted not placed on a Pedestal for his part in the affair. I do nol doubt that North was in part acting on orders either specific or Broad from his superiors. But As several committee members hinted during the televised hearings unlawful orders need not always be obeyed. Nazi War crime and the it. Calley incident attest Alecil Somcy Hal dramatically to this. Let us not Ihen make a Greal american hero out of Oliver North. The mindless pro North hysteria currently sweeping the nation makes me uneasy especially in Light of the fact that there Are still Many unanswered questions and inconsistencies concerning North s role in the Iran Contra affair. Can so Man americans realty be so Gullible few would disagree that America needs a superhero. But let us look elsewhere for someone possessing a greater degree of integrity than North his demonstrated. Ocl us elevate to hero status an individual who will uphold not subvert. The spirit of the Constitution. Name withheld Augsburg germ?.r3j Are we so desperate for a hero have our standards been lowered. Tie Media in any Given nation is the primary source for establishing National and world opinion. Paul Newman s movie absence of malice demonstrated a Good example of the Power of the press. The press has the Power to make a person or scandalized them. Media is an Art form which uses words to paint pictures in the human mind commonly known As one � feelings emotions and opinions about someone or something. Prominent people use this to their advantage and than ask not to be identified As the source of the information. All we Inow about the Iran Contra scandal is what is provided to us by the Media. 1 ask myself if Chr whole Deal was so legitimate Why did he shred documents those were his proof of legitimacy or Media for some reason chose nol to Pami a hero s portrait of Jim Bakker bul instead assisted in scandal zing him. The Media would have americans Leel sorry fur North. I must admit they Are succeeding in some areas. Bul i still hold to my opinion that the scandal and i involvement has brought shame on our country and the credibility of our government. Sftt.4 William i. Knight much ser Germany
