All the patriotic comments and flag waving is interestingly absent here. As usual, like firemen, the military is cast aside when no impending danger is perceived. Massachusetts is fortunate to have Hanscome. They are good neighbors and provide jobs and commerce. It is unfortunate that some fail to appreciate the positive aspects of its presence. Anti-military leadership in Washington is doing it again. Perhaps Canada will step up to the place and defend us after we place our old planes and ships on the scrap heap and send all but a few gate guards home to work in Solyndra and other green environmentally friendly, non-existent industries.

The closing of Hanscom is long overdue. In the Fall of 1975 at the end of the Vietnam war, Hanscom was selected for closure. I found it ironic that Congressman Tsongas led the fight to keep Hanscom from closing. A few months earlier in March 1975,in response to my question "What is congress going to do about the genocide occurring in Cambodia? Congressman Tsongas replied "American armed forces personnel are War Criminals. It is ironic that Paul Tsongas's widow will mount the pig of federal lard and lead the charge to keep a federal facility open for the purpose of providing jobs to her constituents.

N.E. lawmakers are wasting their time vowing to protect Hanscom Air Force Base. The simple truth is the Bedford residents don't want noise and don't give a tinker's damn about the Air Base. The N.E.lawmakers can examine the amount of state funding given to Not-For Profit organizations to finance the exorbitant salaries of their administrators! One has to wonder about the familial connections between the Board Members, Administrators and the N.E. lawmakers. Massachusetts politics as usual? The Governor is crying about cutting jobs . . . blah, blah, blah.

I don't know about the rest of you, but I've been worried about getting attacked by the terrorists/commies since the closing of the South Weymouth Naval Air Station. What a crock! The military is not supposed to be a jobs program. If the defense department says close it, it should be closed. When are our politicians going to care about the welfare of the country, not just their re-election prospects?

Closing bases is a good idea. With a couple of exceptions the US military withdrew from New England years ago. How about withdrawing from Germany? Then there are the 11 bases in Texas alone. Certainly some of them could go.