And if nice, even-headed Americans can go this nuts, just think how crazy the immature Arabs will get when Americans scream out that we want to convert their children. Or, in the words of Ann Coulter, "we should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity."

What's your evidence that these were nice even-headed Americans? Sound like frickin' nutjobs to me.

Taint: this is one of the most offensive messages I've read lately. I don't even know where to begin. Arabs are "immature" and liable to go "crazy" from a few statements by Americans. While someone who pours hot oil on their spouse is "even-headed". Or, worse yet, Americans in general are "even-headed".

Americans can be just as hot headed and radicalized as certain parts of the Arab and Moslem populations. In most countries in the Middle East, there is no universal, free education. Poor parents who want an education for their children send them to clerical schools where they are taught to read by memorizing the Koran and they are taught a radical polictical agenda. Just as we teach our children that America is the upholder of freedom, justice and democracy for the whole world. And if they swallow this propaganda whole. they will be good little soldiers when we decide to go out and oppress some other country where the people are "immature" and need our paternal guidance or "crazy" and prone to bizarre acts of violence.

Rudith

Thank you for your comments in which you label my views “offensive.” Since I have never been called offensive before, and I know that people would never use the word “offensive” unless they have truly suffered some injury I read the rest of your post with the presumption that you had something truly meritorious to say and that you had taken not just the words, but the spirt of my message to heart, and it had injured you. I noted that it is very rare for members of the female species to use the word “offensive.” A prime tenant of the female religion is to never be offended, but, instead to attempt to understand and rebut arguments that you do not agree with. My argument, it seems was beyond the scope of your ability to reason and you were offended.

Sorry. I will strive to conform my views to yours because I would not want to offend you, or any other members of the female race at any point in the future. I hereby retract my call to repeal the nineteen amendment.

Anyway, on to the rest of your post.

You take issue with the fact that I suggested that Arabs were acting in a violent manner when someone provokes them. However, at the same time to justify this violence. This is somewhat confusing. Is it wrong to act in a violent manner when provoked. As a Buddhist (and a strict vegetarian), I certainly would not act in such a violent manner. Therefore, I am very mature. The Arabs are less mature. I do not see how your post-facto justifications make them *more* mature.

Americans can be radicalized? Is that so? Well, I guess the other day I saw a bunch of women in Washington protesting abortion. (They were in favor of it, I ascertained, by asking one of them.) I asked one of them if they had read Roe v. Wade and Casey. All of them had heard of Roe, but none of them had heard of Casey. None of them had read either case, but they said that it “legalized abortion.” I asked one of them (the one wearing the tank-top and the Doc Martins) whether abortion was legal any individual states before Roe, she said that she was offended. It seems, Rudith, that you are not the first member of the female class to have been offended.

However, it seems that these “radicalized” Americans are just as educated as the Arabs. They talk about things without doing basic research. Some of them seem to devote their lives to legal principles that they are too busy watch “Friends” to understand.

I asked another girl about the Patriot Act. (She was holding a sign that said something about it.) She said that the Patriot act allows the government to hold Padilla. I offered to show her my copy of the USAPA, as well as the government’s briefs at all stales of Padilla v. Rumsfeld. She refused, citing a need to finish reading a very special edition of Cosmopolitian. She also said something like “you will vote for Bush, you Bush-lover.” I took offense. I don’t vote. I then pointed out that by acting like you fear a policy and not participating in the constitutional scrutiny of it you probably support it. She got very mad at me. I told her to go to law school.

(Oh, by the way, I was almost offended by your use of the word “swallow.”)

Anyway, it seems that girls are just like the children of poor Arabs who are sent to schools to memorize the Koran. They don’t seem to think that much, but they are sure good at reciting passages from the book of “lets go on a road-trip chant slogans.”

You then say (and I presume that you are offended by it, since you are offended by everything) that Americans learn that America is good and then become soldiers who do bad things. I fail to see the connection. Are you saying that if someone is taught in school that the USA is a collection of institutions which interact with each other based on a series of legal doctrines they wouldn’t do bad things? This seems a little weird. After all, the children of parents who teach them that the US is bad seem to do bad things too – they talk about legal issues without having read any of the statutes or laws. They seem to justify, explain, and sometimes actively support the horrible deeds of other cultures, arguing that it is the “culture” of a country to oppress people.

Now, after reading your post and no longer opposing the controversial nineteenth amendment, I think that anyone who says anything good about a country where women cannot be elected to its highest office is a bad person.

Also, I should note that there is no evidence that any brutalization of prisoners was done to further a political agenda, or because of a specific book. Many people have argued that it is legal and acceptable to brutalize prisoners, so their deeds were based on a series of legal decisions that may ultimately have been faulty.