Obama vs. Kissinger

Re “Bash Kissinger but not Obama?,” Opinion, Oct. 18

Niall Ferguson’s comparison of President Obama’s counter-terrorism policies to the actions of former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger is simply nonsense.

Kissinger believed that the application of U.S. force worldwide and the support of proxy force-application regimes advanced American interests. Obama, to the contrary, believes that history has demonstrated that Kissinger’s approach has been counterproductive (see Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan) and that political solutions to political problems serve the U.S. long term.

Regardless of one’s opinion of the validity of either approach, the fact is that they are polar opposites.

Eric Carey

Arlington, Va.

Comparing the Chilean military coup of 1973 to the Egyptian military seizure of power two years ago, Ferguson asks, “In what way does Gen. Sisi differ from Gen. Pinochet?”

Well, the overthrow of the legally elected, democratic regime in Chile, resulting in torture and thousands of deaths and disappearances, was supported by the Nixon-Kissinger White House. Obama’s responsibility for Sisi seizing power in Egypt is, well, nonexistent.

Case closed.

Dave Bufe

Tujunga