Rich Elfers nailed the I.S. problem by citing the historical facts about the World War 1-created nation states. In “Future Jihad,” Walid Phares warned us about the rise of a caliphate and Osama skillfully snookered the U.S. into his hands with the 9/11 attacks. (The first World Trade Towers attack didn’t “take” but now we’re in our longest war ever with the “GWOT.”)

Mr. Elfers wisely didn’t offer any trite “solutions” or suggest the forces behind U.S. actions, but others have. For example, in “Pay any Price,” James Risen (he’s the journalist under attack by the DOJ for refusing to reveal his CIA sources for his “State of War” book) notes that Eisenhower first warned of the military industrial complex and goes on to document that the big lobbying money behind our one-track solution to every problem. (If all you have is a hammer, every problem is a nail, and the military industrial complex including privately-owned General Atomics Aeronautical, builder of the infamous Predator drone which collaterally kills Yemeni wedding parties along with suspects showing “patterns of behavior” build a lot of hammers.)

So what’s to do about it? I have been disappointed that editorial boards (e.g., the Tacoma News Tribune) didn’t squawk on behalf of the Fourth Estate for James Risen. I’m leading up to suggesting that The Courier-Herald take an editorial position on something that might help: specifically, I ask that Mr. Box consider taking a position on I-735 and put a dog in the fight by hosting a petition box in your office.

A. Tom Jensen

Auburn