Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, July 24, 1993                   TAG: 9307260306
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A-7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

WHOSE ORDERS DID NORTH FOLLOW?

Phillips states that North was following orders and that he swore to obey his commanders. Whose orders and what commanders - President Reagan, Vice President Bush or the commandant of the Marine Corp? None of these have taken credit for the unlawful orders North claims to have obeyed. Were these orders given by somebody out of North's chain of command, or were they passed to him out of the normal military channels? Either of these methods does not a hero make, but they do make a rogue officer going against what was established as our government's policy concerning Iran and the Contras.

Yes, I served in the military and have served my government as a civilian since my honorable discharge in 1978. I can tell the difference between right and wrong, and what North did was wrong. He followed orders of nonmilitary politicians who run our government from secret sessions, because we simple citizens are not qualified to know what is good for us as a nation. W. WARREN KELCHNER SALEM