In a recent letter, Neil Snyder wrote that "today’s party is not your daddy’s Democratic party, and you’ll have a hard time attracting conservatives to support it" (HCN, 5/24/04: This isn't your daddy's Democratic party). His arguments were disingenuous on at least two counts. He alluded to the fact that two Democrats got us involved in Vietnam, while a Republican president extricated us. This begs the question: How many years did Nixon and Kissinger prolong the Vietnam War, at the expense of countless Vietnamese and American lives? Mr. Snyder also conveniently ignored a more contemporary example, in which a Republican president started a war on false pretenses that has become a debacle.

I’m afraid the term "Republican environmentalist" has become an oxymoron. For example, John McCain has reasonable environmental credentials. However, he is also the head of the Bush re-election campaign in Arizona. If McCain contributes to a Bush victory in Arizona, and hence nationally, this will negate any positive contribution to the environment that McCain may have made as senator.

This isn’t your daddy’s Republican party, either, and environmentalists shouldn’t support it. Economic libertarians and religious fundamentalists have taken over the GOP. Their agenda is a cornucopia of astoundingly inconsistent positions, but doesn’t include any meaningful protection for the environment.

Stephen Jenkins
Reno, Nevada