To the editor:

I am responding to Stanford Horns My View, published June 4, 2009, that Congressman Jim Moran is out of touch with his constituency. It appears more likely that Stanford Horn is out of touch.

It has been stated on numerous occasions throughout history by economists and statesmen alike that a true democracy cannot survive without a middle class, especially a well-educated one. It is apparent that at this time in history we have neither.

Democracy depends on the public having a clear understanding of the issues and facts to make intelligent decisions for its community. As long as the press and those individuals or groups that think they have something to gain with lies, no matter how short-lived those gains may be, we will never, as a nation of values and ideals we once proclaimed to be, rise out of these ashes. By deceiving the general public and parroting the poisonous untruths again and again that have lead this country down one of the darkest paths during recent years in this nations history, there are those who want to continue the deception by deserting the values and ideals that this country was founded on.

Mr. Horn needs to look at the most recent facts surrounding Guantanamo Bay. It is a known fact among those that are well read, that the majority of those prisoners held in Gitmo are neither criminals nor terrorists. One of the numerous sources for this information is a BBC documentary called Mystery Flights and numerous lawsuits that are being filed and won against our government, by would-be terrorists. These men, some of which are United States citizens, have no criminal record nor have they ever been terrorists. Their only crime is to be of Middle Eastern heritage.

Khaled el-Masri, a German car salesman who was never connected to any terrorist group, was held and tortured for months under the extraordinary renditions of the CIA request in other countries and at Guantanamo. The goal of the torture was to gain confessions that el-Masri had been with Osama bin Ladin. There are others such as Mahi Khan, a 17 year-old Canadian held at Gitmo for 7 years, according to the documentary. He had no criminal record, was an honor student and was never connected to any terrorist group nor were there proven facts by a court that any of those held were terrorists or combatants. If they werent terrorists before entering Gitmo, then they probably have more cause to be now. Those that lost hope of ever seeing their families again committed suicide. Maiha Arakar was tortured in Ayria complements of our CIA. Menya Mohammed is sitting in Gitmo as I write this.

So my question is two fold: Since there is no proof of any of the few prisoners who have confessed under torture to being part of 9/11 or connected to Bin Laden (other than the confessions themselves), where are those that are connected to 9/11? These twist of truths and deceptions are why nothing has ever moved forward other than the infamous case of Zacarias Moussaoui by whom Mr. Horn stated he was so inconvenienced.

My second question is why does Mr. Horn think that after the insufferable war crimes that we have committed against others around the world, do we not have the responsibility of righting those wrongs? The citizens of this country will never know the truth until these prisoners are on American soil, have the right to a fair trial and accessibility to attorneys who can then find out who they really are and what crimes they have committed if any.

You asked why there are millions of people trying to get into the U.S. Look for yourself. If our governments priority is the safety and financial well being of the American citizens, we would be much more discreet about who is allowed in and who is not. People are coming here for one reason and one reason only: their own country has failed them in most cases and they want to make money. Money, money and what it can buy is the dream. It is not for the American ideal or values. It is hard to think ideal when you are hungry and your family is also.

Congressman Moran is asking the citizens of this community to allow these prisoners, who not only cannot speak English in most cases, but who have none of the technical know how to try to escape, to be housed under maximum security. My second thought is why not in New York where the events of September 11, 2001 took place? Why wont our New York community accept those who have been charged with such conspiracy against the New York community?

Mr. Horn, it is my point of view that the American Auschwitz you so fondly reference is right here in our own backyard. And were it not for organizations like Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR), your conscious wouldnt be further inconvenienced, either.

Nancy Parker
Alexandria