Editor,

Although I certainly can agree that posters or pictures of the president in the local post office should not be defaced, I have some quarrel with the writer of the letter to the editor in the Aug. 6 Whidbey News-Times.

The first comment about Barack Obama being “much loved” begs the question, by whom? Certainly not by me and many of my friends and lovers of this great country.

“Much loved” is a total misrepresentation.

Our nation has seven or eight areas of major concern, both foreign and domestic, in which he seems to be totally detached. Just where is the president on these issues? I’ll enlighten you — he is nowhere to be seen unless it’s playing pool, basketball or golf. He is the most detached leader we have ever had, in my memory.

And as to the need to “respect the office,” since Hitler was mentioned, I ask would the writer “respect” his office, for he was chancellor of Germany. Or how about Saddam Hussein, president of Iraq — for a time — or Benito Mussolini, il Duce of Italy?

No, I don’t think the writer would respect those “offices” if she lived in those countries.

Our “president” needed to earn our respect, but time for that has long passed. His presence in the Oval Office is a travesty and neither he, nor his office, deserves respect, at least not from me.

The writer also mentioned being a member of a group that pickets for peace, and that is commendable, for we all want peace. However, I would suggest that the picketing be moved to areas controlled by Al Qaeda, the Taliban, Hamas or, better yet, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.

Here we all want peace, but I think we’re in the minority, so maybe that effort might well be directed to those who don’t.

Fred Stilwell

Oak Harbor