Soldier witnessed the way Saddam treats his people

To the editor:

I've read many of the Speak Out comments concerning the United States going to war with Iraq. Some of them make a lot of sense as they are backed up with fact. Others, like those declaring that the United States is going to war over oil, come from poorly informed people. If the United States wanted to go to war to capture and exploit Iraqi oil fields, why didn't the government take advantage of its win after the first Gulf War? And couldn't the government have pressured Kuwait into handing over its oil?

Let me tell you why the United States should invade and liberate Iraq.

During the Gulf War, I was an airman with an Air Force special operations unit. I and my team members were many times flown deep into Iraq to coordinate air strikes. On more than 20 occasions I was flown into Baghdad. What I saw there has haunted me for years. We witnessed firsthand the destruction that Saddam Hussein unleashed on the wives and children of male dissenters. Not long after our first mission into Baghdad, we were hit with mustard gas. The attack was directed at the women and children who were crowded into a small market area. This was never reported by the media, nor will it be. This wasn't an isolated event.

I respect the right to protest, but protesters need to realize that the government won't always tell the public what and why it's doing what it's doing.

MASTER SGT. COLE BRYANT

U.S. Air Force

Cape Girardeau