Aloha from the U.S. mainland! I am currently traveling and as I do I have had numerous discussions with many "ordinary working class" persons who I would have expected to be much more in favor of President's Bush's war policies than what I am encountering....as I discuss the War in Iraq with these persons, I am finding almost unanimous agreement that they believe the President of the United States has lied to the American public...promoting a war that will primarily benefit the rich persons in the U.S. and not the average person in Iraq or the U.S. as he (Bush) repeatedly states in his speeches.

I have also noted that more and more people in our nation are deeply concerned about the new tax breaks for the rich that President Bush has led...despite the fact that our nation's public school system is going to hell with many of the students and teachers losing hope in a better future....

I believe we have the responsibility to continue to discuss these important issues and organize...organize...organize for a change in leadership in 2004!!!! It is espcially important for privileged persons in the academy to stand up as members of the loyal opposition to regain a greater sense of democracy and justice in these troubling times...

Peace and justice NOW!!!

I suspect, that what we find, if he get to the bottom of all of that hate, is that our lives of extreme privilege are built on the backs of thousands if not millions of our brothers and sisters throughout the world, and here at home. That is the uncomfortable fact of our existence. The question, once we acknowledge that (and of course it's open to debate), is what are we going to do about it? And what acts are meaningful in our local context?

By the way, Senator Byrd rocks!

Edited by author 05-07-2003 12:17 PM
"We as a nation have lots of questions for our government. From Colin Powell to George Bush we have seen that our leaders are not bound by the truth when it comes to telling us what they think we should hear. Little do they know that if the American Government was truthful with its citizens and those citizens could learn to trust their government again, America would again be the leader of the world. Not only are American citizens in greater and greater numbers learning to distrust their own government, but billions of people in the rest of this world feel that way too. The real question still is, "Why Do They Hate Us" It took a lot of hate to get nineteen men together and get them to kill themselves in order to tell us something. What was that terrorist attack telling America other than people are willing to give up their lives to kill some of us. That is a lot of hate. Why are we as a people afraid to explore this question? What are we afraid we will find?"

James Glaser (2003)
The Real Unanswered Question Still Is, Why Do They Hate Us?
http://www.jamesglaser.org/2003/p20030213.html

"What is happening to this country? When did we become a nation which ignores and berates our friends? When did we decide to risk undermining international order by adopting a radical and doctrinaire approach to using our awesome military might? How can we abandon diplomatic efforts when the turmoil in the world cries out for diplomacy? Why can this President not seem to see that America's true power lies not in its will to intimidate, but in its ability to inspire?"

- Senator Robert C. Byrd (D- Virginia)
Speech delivered on the floor of the U.S. Senate, March 19, 2003
http://www.tompaine.com/feature.cfm/ID/7451

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