Letter to the editor: Cheney can leave the government, but can’t leave it alone

By SPENCER WRIGHT former Emery County resident Salt Lake City

Editor,
Dick Cheney recently warned of new imminent attacks on U.S. soil because of the constitutionally-compliant policies being brought back by the new administration. He claims as evidence that 61 of the released Guantanamo inmates are recidivists, returning to their former life as terrorists. Interestingly, it was the administration that he worked for (or controlled?) who let them go. I’ve never called for the release of Guantanamo inmates, but rather to give them a fair trial. He’s the one that simply released them into the wild. And somehow that’s now the new administration’s fault.
But his rhetoric raises a much more pertinent question. Sixty one people have been freed and might have intentions to potentially commit terroristic acts. But what of the countless thousands of young men and women around the world who use the symbol of Guantanamo Bay as a rallying cry for their extreme views? How many more terrorists exist in the world because Guantanamo exists, not because a few men have been released from that place?
Anyone who thinks that potential terrorists make the decision to join a terrorist organization based on whether they fear being sent to Guantanamo needs a lesson in psychology. They are not motivated by fear of GITMO…they are motivated by hatred and anger toward America. Do you think the existence of Guantanamo helps them feel less hatred and anger toward America?
I feel much safer without a GITMO.