In response to Ronald E. Harris letter (Herald, June 23): Harris states “Get the facts before insulting the U.S.” It amazes me how many people don’t know the difference between fact and opinion. Dictionary.com defines fact as: “something that actually exists; reality; truth; something known to exist or to have happened.”

Harris says the dropping of the atomic bomb actually saved millions of lives. He uses quotations to support this theory: “It is estimated that by using the atomic bomb, millions of lives were saved versus a ground invasion of Japan.” And, “as one scholar who studied the U.S. invasion plan, Operation Downfall, notes: ‘Depending on the degree to which Japanese civilians resisted the invasion, estimates ran into the millions for Allied casualties and tens of millions for Japanese casualties.’”

Both quotations support his argument, but they are opinions, not fact. There is no way to know how many lives were saved because an invasion by Allied forces never happened.

There are many theories on this issue. Many believe the bomb was dropped to give the U.S. an upper hand in the upcoming Cold War, some believed Truman had to use the bomb to justify the money used on the Manhattan Project. All are theories, opinions.

If you are going to accuse someone of not using facts, use facts yourself. Harris ends his letter with: “Please, get the facts before you cast shame on our great nation. United States has done far more good in this world than any nation in history and continues to be the kindest and most generous of all nations.”

Here is a fact on how generous the United States is: “According to the OECD, in 2009, the United States committed 0.20 percent of its gross national income (GNI) to official development assistance, which makes the United States 19th in that category out of the 23 member countries of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC). Sweden ranks first, committing 1.12 percent of its GNI to development assistance.”

A true patriot checks his government; he doesn’t blindly follow its lead.

Ronald L. Sherman

Durango