Paying for the war

Re “Partisan Battle Trips Up Popular Tax Benefits,” Sept. 17

I appreciate the efforts Congress is making to ensure that Americans do not “miss out on valuable benefits,” but I must ask a basic question: How do we plan to pay for Iraq?

It now seems pointless to discuss whether one was for the war or against it, as we are now deep in it. But we can no longer continue to leverage the costs of this war on the backs of future generations.

Don’t Americans make sacrifices during wartime? Are we not at war? Is it not patriotic to fund this war and support our troops not with ribbons but with armor?

If freedom and democracy are so important, we should all throw in a little change for the cause.

PATRICK SHANDRICK

West Hollywood