Repudiate insults to city officials
In what way, exactly, does Baltimore attorney William H. "Billy" Murphy Jr. think that Adolf Hitler was "effective," and how dare he equate the Baltimore police or Mayor Martin O'Malley with Hitler ("Murphy is denounced for linking Nazis, police," Sept. 30)?
Shamefully, when given the opportunity to apologize or withdraw his statement, Mr. Murphy instead chose to congratulate himself for making his point, and Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s campaign spokeswoman denounced Mr. Murphy's critics instead of renouncing his remarks.
Mr. Murphy's off-the-cuff comment on a radio talk show could have been forgiven had he promptly withdrawn the comment and apologized. But his failure to do so has become the governor's problem.
Now Mr. Ehrlich needs to take responsibility by renouncing Mr. Murphy's comment, apologizing for his spokeswoman's remark and discontinuing his hurtful radio ads.
Steve Lebowitz
Annapolis
Steele's language sets the wrong tone
I am appalled by Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele suggesting to Rep. Benjamin L. Cardin that he should "shut up" ("Senate hopefuls launch tough talk," Oct. 4).
Civility, courtesy and manners should not be thrown aside as though the election is a back-alley brawl.
"Shut up" should not be part of anyone's vocabulary.
In an age in which children have few heroes other than rap stars and ballplayers, it would be wonderful if politicians could elevate their vocabulary, not set a new low.
My respect for Mr. Steele is diminished by his poor manners and judgment.
He should find other means to grab the public's attention.
Elsbeth Selver
Baltimore
Democrats lack will to win war on terror
If Bill Clinton didn't do anything wrong in the lead-up to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, why did he later cite his failure to capture Osama bin Laden as the biggest failure of his presidency ("More Clinton finger-wagging, and dishonesty," Opinion
Commentary, Sept. 27)?
If the Clinton administration didn't do anything wrong in the years leading up to 9/11, how come Mr. Clinton's national security adviser, Samuel R. Berger, was caught shoving classified documents down his pants at the National Archives in an attempt to hide them from the 9/11 commission?
While some in the national media try incessantly to cover up Mr. Clinton's failures, the facts are clear.
