To the editor:

As the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attack which claimed 2,605 American lives draws near, I wonder if The Journal would publish a letter by someone claiming that these horrific events didn’t happen? Would it publish a letter from someone who asked, “where are all the dead bodies?” of those killed on the four planes, in the collapsing towers, at the Pentagon? To say nothing of the lives lost in the aftermath. We saw, with our own eyes, the horrors occurring that day. We heard the coverage. We didn’t need to go to New York City or Washington DC, or Shanksville, PA to confirm those deaths. Imagine submitting a similar letter to the paper questioning the casualties of the 9/11 terrorist attacks and imagine it being published.

But in a letter to the editor “Wake up, people!” published Sept. 3, Roger Bauer had the audacity to question the existence of over 645,000 American casualties due to SARS-CoV-2. We saw the healthcare workers pleading for help with our own eyes — short on equipment, staff, and space. He had the audacity to insinuate that the family members and friends of those 645,000 people did not actually experience loss. We saw the interviews and talked to those left behind, who implored others to take this situation seriously. He has the nerve to suggest doctors, coroners, public health workers, and the government are lying about 645,000 deaths. Roger asks “where are the dead bodies?” My condolences to those who lost loved ones because of this pandemic and I am sincerely sorry that your loss was called into question.

Sarah Leslie

New Ulm