Fred LetterTo HONEST(1)

I totally agree with most of your points. Also, you have asked
some very complex questions, which I'll do my best to answer. First, I am
a Ph.D. in Psychology and this was my subject when I was teaching. Second,
my main complaint against America is that we are a totally materialistic
country. Quite simply, the average American cares mostly about creature
comforts and his knowledge of world history is almost non-existent. Of
course this explains Bush's adventures in the middle east as all he must
do is is scare people about terrorism. We then roll over and endorse all
kinds of stupid actions. On the other hand, 9/11 was a horrible wake-up
call alerting us to the fact that many people despised us and that we are
very vulnerable. We also noticed that Saudi Arabia, supposedly our staunch
ally, produced 15 of the 18 suicide bombers. I'll close with two important
opservations. (1) The U.S. has 800 military bases throughout the world.
Clearly, we are an imperialist power and commit many of the abuses
associated with imperialism. (2) A person cannot understand our
relationship with the middle east without first understanding this history
of OIL. This is the fuel which feeds our burgeoning economic needs and
we'll do whatever it takes to assure a plentiful and cheap supply.
FRED