Defense Secretary Robert Gates was right to call out our European allies for their lack of commitment to NATO and their over dependence on the defense forces of the USA ("Gates hits NATO allies hard," June 11).

Anyone who has traveled to Western Europe can only marvel at the standard of living enjoyed by the majority their citizens. Germany is an interesting case in that this is a country that suffered greatly economically as a result of two world wars but with the help of outsiders has become an economic powerhouse. Even relatively small German cities have fantastic local transportation systems that are user friendly, and the national rail system is also great. Germany, like several other countries, is not meeting its commitments to its own defense, and in reality we are subsidizing the defense interests of a section of the world that is known for its prosperity.

We need to change the model. Our allies should increase their financial and troop commitment while we scale back. Clearly, we are being exploited by our so-called friends. We are underfunding transportation, education and other services as we are spending too much of our GDP on defense. Obviously many Americans profit from the military industrial establishment so they have no interest in the defense budget cuts. However many Americans are tired of supporting a defense budget that is inflated and subsidizes wealthy nations. Of course, this is not simply a financial issue. Why are substantially more American troops being placed in harm's way? Secretary Gates was right to raise this issue. The U.S. government needs to follow through in this matter. We need to seriously rethink our defense commitments.

Edward McCarey McDonnell, Baltimore