Originally Posted by ylwjacket

Eric - I sometimes have a hard time figuring out why you live in the USA, partaking in its horrible capalistic society and exercising the freedoms guaranteed under its Constitution, when you hate it so much?

I also have a hard time figuring if you hate the POTUS, and generalize that hatred to all Americans, businesses, and institutions of government, of if you actually hate Americans, businesses, and institutions of government.

Whatever the case may be, I often also wonder how there are so few people in this country who are so enlightened as to what really happens, and the other 300 million of us are mindless dolts caught up in the government propoganda machine. Actually, maybe I'm more offended that the enlightened few actually believe that I have no mind of my own.

At least Scottie throws stones from another country. I don't agree with some (OK most, when it come sot politics) of the stuff she says, but she's not having it both ways.

One thing to remember Scottie - no one appointed us captain. It was thrust upon us when we were attacked, by terrorists, who wish to acquire WMD to do us even more harm. Prior to 9/11, there was actually a trend towards isolationism in this country - you leave us alone, we'll leave you alone. It all changed that day.

We can argue the Iraq war all day long and get about as far as our own Congress is getting (that would be nowhere). Personally, I think there is no doubt that our President and Congress overestimated the size of the mandate they were handed by the people. But, in our form of government, you live with it until you can change it.

However - we have the absolute inalienable right to act in our own self-defense. And, for better or for worse, depending upon your perspective, we have the will, the personnel, and the means to do so.

I often wonder if the self-righteous Europeans would turn the other cheek in the face of a terrorist attack on the scale of what happened to the US. I tend to doubt it. On the other hand, outside of the UK, there probably isn't a damn thing they could do about it either, for want of means and will.