To the editor:

The “Innenstadt” is the center of Vienna, Austria. It is encircled by a beautiful tree-lined boulevard, the Ringstrasse.

On the southeastern segment of that boulevard is a magnificent huge building with dozens of likenesses of famous generals from the days of the monarchy. The joke in Austria in those days, since the building was named das Kriegsministerium, i.e., the ministry of war, was that if you have a ministry of war, the folks working there are obviously eager to get something to do to underscore their purpose, as in the name of their ministry — see World War I. The name stuck until 1945, and we all know how that war ended; then, see World War II.

Emphasizing the Austrians’ desire to stay out of wars – it is now called Federal Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology. The likenesses of the generals still adorn the building – a historically protected structure.

Likewise, I would counsel the Trump administration to leave the name Department of Defense which, I believe, more accurately reflects the purpose of that entity. The last thing our country needs is a group of people in D.C. looking for something to do to fulfill the purpose of their department’s title, namely “war.”

Peter Sontag

Steubenville