A wrong-way exit

Afghanistan: What went wrong? | Editorial, Aug. 16

I never thought there could be a more botched military withdrawal than Vietnam. I was wrong. The current administration’s withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan is a total disaster. The president set a date and said we would be out of Afghanistan by that date and, thus, with poor planning and worse execution, chaos ensued. What a botched operation. The military code says “leave no one behind,” yet the Defense secretary says we lacked the capability to protect the thousands of Americans trying to get to Kabul Airport. That is just plain false. The current administration just does not have the internal fortitude to get them out. That’s embarrassing and just wrong.

Robert Butler, Tampa

Just sell me a ticket

Pennant race and sparse crowds? Gotta be Rays | Romano column, Aug. 15

One contributing factor to the Tampa Bay Rays’ attendance woes may be the hurdles just to buy a ticket. I was interested in attending Thursday’s Orioles afternoon game, figuring it’d be pretty easy to social-distance in the sparse crowd, but found out I’d have to (1) download yet another phone app and (2) register for an account, which means more marketing texts. Only then could I even see what a ticket costs. What happened to walking up to a ticket booth on game day and buying a ticket?

Edward Chapman, Tampa

Greed, again

What does America stand for anymore? | Column, Aug. 20

The columnist asks a question. The answer? Greed is good.

Matthew Leonard, St. Petersburg