Letters from Father Val J. Peter, JCD, STD
Executive Director, Boys Town

September 13, 2001

Open Letter to the American People:

We are in the midst of a great national tragedy. It is a tragedy senselessly inflicted by a few human beings upon many others. It is most harmful.

1. These terrorists are attacking freedom. They hate it.

Why spread terror in America? Because America symbolizes freedom.

These religious fanatics hate freedom because they want to impose their ideas, their views, their religious convictions by force on others. And if they can't impose them by force, then they want to terrorize and punish this symbol of freedom which is America.

Religion (like everything else) can be healthy or unhealthy. The Gate of Heaven Cult in San Diego was an example of sick religion. These terrorists are an example of horribly sick religion.

LET US RESOLVE to cherish freedom, to defend freedom, to embrace freedom.

Let freedom ring.
Let freedom ring.

2. What do terrorists use to get their way? Terror.

There are three parts to the terrorists' plan:

- The first is terrorists use terror (by blowing up airplanes and buildings).
- Second, they want adults like me and you to be filled with that terror.
- Third, if we adults are filled with terror, our children will be filled with terror.

What can we do? The first thing we can do as adults is refuse to be terrorized. Terror is a form of fear. The best way to get rid of fear is anger. Healthy, justifiable anger! You and I as adults should become angry that these people are attacking freedom and want to replace it with repression, subjugation, subordination, domination and exclusion.

So there is such a thing as healthy anger. It's righteous anger. We need to resolve to let our anger grow. We will not be filled with fear. Anger will take that fear and terror away.

Secondly, we can, as parents, refuse to let our children be terrorized. We can't let our children be filled with fear or anxiety. We need to soothe our children, console our children, assure our children that we angry adults will deal with these terrorists to rid ourselves of this problem. They started the fight. We need to finish it.

LET US RESOLVE to assure our children that we will protect them. We need to assure them that they are safe and that they don't have to worry. Our children will see how angry (in a healthy way) we are at terrorists. It is good for them to see this. It is good for them to feel safe.

We are applying a solid behavioral principle here. Behavior can be extinguished by not allowing to take its desired effect. If a terrorist tries to terrorize people and they are terrorized, he will be encouraged to terrorize again. But if we, as a people, do not let ourselves be terrorized, but rather angered and rise up in defense of our liberty, he will think twice or three times before trying it again. Why? Because terrorism is not working.

1. Private virtue and moral discipline are the best defense of freedom. Freedom is not defended by wimps or cowards. It is not defended by liars or cheats. It is defended by people who have developed virtue and self-discipline. The virtues are: courage, goodness, kindness, sharing, caring, sacrifice and love.

The freest person, Aristotle says, is the person who can love under any circumstances. Jesus says: "No greater love than this does anyone have than to lay down his life for his friends."

LET US RESOLVE to lay down our lives for our children and our beloved country.if need be.

My country 'tis of thee,
sweet land of liberty,
of thee I sing.
Land where my fathers died,
land of the pilgrims' pride,
from every mountainside,
let freedom ring.

P.S. - DON'T MESS WITH AMERICA!

Sincerely yours,

Father Val J. Peter, JCD, STD,
Executive Director, Boys Town