See, Americans just don't think things through; probably our biggest fault ever. People hear the word "war", and they automatically assume that the machinery of the Government has already started on some evil purpose. So they get out their picket signs, go downtown for a couple of hours, shout until their voices are hoarse, and then they pack up, get into their Lincoln Navigators, burn up obscene amounts of gas on the drive home to the suburbs, and continue to live out their lives in sublime oblivion. Never once did they consider why war is now likely. Sure, there's hearsay about a war for oil, America exercising its political prowess, and a million other things, reasons people use to fuel the fire of their hatred. But how much do they know, really? Do they work for the government? Are they keyed into diplomatic meetings? Do they have some secret source that I don't? Do they have the ear of all the political leaders of the world? The simple answer is no: such a large majority of them have no clue what's going on. Where do you get your information? The media? The media is free to edit what you hear and see, and it LOVES controversy. It will take a small issue (e.g. a president's private blowjob) and turn it into a national, even global, crisis. And this is the same media that's demonizing the President of the United States. Sure, he may not be the greatest man alive, but someone has to have a motive for printing up newspapers with a front-page picture that makes George W. Bush look like he's screaming like a madman while simultaneously holding up his arm in a gesture reminiscent of "Heil Hitler". And thus, the media subconsciously (and directly, in some ways) affects your view of the situation.

  I think people should have at least some clear idea of what is going on before they can start debating the issues.

  And to those that say everyone hates America, where are YOU getting your information? As a matter of fact, most of the world LOVES America. This comes from my experience of having many international students for friends. While many people abroad do hate George Bush for many the same reasons that we do (this again reinforcing the idea that media is controlling global thought on this subject), most every foreign representative that I know loves America. America is the world's Big Brother, something we take to extreme sometimes, butting in where we don't belong, but that's a lengthy issue that can't be fully discussed here. We're capitalists, yes, we defined the word for the world, but everyone loves to reap our benefits. They want to be our friends so in case any money happens to fall out of our usually-bulging pockets, they can make a mad scramble for any loose change that scatters. We've also developed some of the most immediately-gratifying culture ever seen, and psychologically speaking, humans tend towards immediate-gratification.

  The last issue I would like to address is the capricious nature of Bush's criticizers. One minute they're saying he's an idiot who can't tie his own shoes, and the next their accusing him of trying to take over the world. Where is the logic there? Could such a "feeble-minded" man really be capable of such a threat?

  You may say that Bush is just a figure-head for America, and that's where the criticism comes from. Okay, well, why do we need a figure-head? Someone to take the fall? Yes, I'll admit America is capable of some pretty bad stuff, but until YOU are ready to accept that fact that you are 1/280,000,000 of the "grand-machinery" that is America, then you need to keep your mouth shut, because you're only contributing to it more.