Intern Daniel Pipes

Two Letters to the Editor in the Dallas-Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Sunday, Jan. 23, 2005). Good letters, guys!


I read Daniel Pipes' Dec. 30 commentary supporting the internment of people who are threats to the American way of life, and I was especially taken by his effort to justify internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II.

At first, I didn't think much of his idea. But then I read the letters on his commentary, particularly those by R.H. Gruy and Harold Moore, who supported Pipes' proposal. (See Jan. 7 letters, "A debate on internment.")

I then realized that my objection to the idea of interning threats to America was based entirely on how Pipes proposed it, merely as an idea for discussion. Once I began to apply the idea to some real threats to America, it became clear how good it really is.

So in the interest of making the idea less theoretical and more concrete, let me provide a short, initial list of who should immediately be interned in order to protect the rest of us:

• Daniel Pipes.
• Gruy and Moore.
• The editor who authorized publishing Pipes' commentary.

All of these people apparently support the arbitrary and indefinite internment of people who are presumed to be threats to America, so I'm sure that we need only write to them and tell them where to report. It should be easy to administer, and America would be much safer without them on the streets.

As I say, the idea becomes much more interesting once some real people are considered.

Richard Brewer
Fort Worth

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A plaque in front of the Manzanar camp (California Registered Historical Landmark No. 850) reads as follows:

"In the early part of WWII, 110,000 persons of Japanese ancestry were interned in relocation centers by Executive Order No. 9066, issued February 19, 1942. Manzanar was the first of ten such concentration camps. It was bounded by barbed wire and guard towers, confining 10,000 persons, the majority being American citizens. May the injustices and humiliation suffered here as a result of hysteria, racism and economic exploitation never emerge again."

Anyone who thinks that Daniel Pipes has a legitimate point of view should read firsthand accounts written by Japanese-Americans about their experiences of internment in the United States. And given that Pipes is talking about "registering" people based on religious affiliation, Night by Elie Wiesel is also a must-read.

Unless we safeguard the liberties of all our citizens, the Pledge of Allegiance and the Declaration of Independence mean about as much as a plastic flag bumper sticker.

Jaime Moore
Keller