Wow! SDAI comes riding in on his white horse again, his panties all in a wad......LOL.
Damn! The first paragraph I though FOR SURE described the Bush administration:

>"There is hypocrisy, vulgar materialism, expensive ugliness, addiction to high sounding ideals which are rarely permitted to interfere with shrewd, cold pursuit of narrow self-interest..."

>"The protesters claim to be against many unnecessary future deaths, yet that is exactly what this war is going to prevent."

How can YOU sitting atop that that white horse of yours say that with such CERTAINTY??
Sadam is a tyrant, but he's not the only one. We don't have much to FEAR from him; maybe his own people do.
No, wait a minute, we love the Iraqi people and we are going in to liberate them! (Did we forget South Africa??)
This war will not prevent future deaths. It hasn't even started YET. The dead are yet to start turning up....Iraqi OR American. And then there is the law of "unintended consequences....for example...see above).

>"The protesters claim they don't want to see blood spilled for oil - yet that is precisely the policy of Germany, Belgium and France - small nations with a total dependence upon foreign oil, who are willing to deal with a policy of "oil for weapons and tyranny."

Ahh yes, but they ARE nations, small or not. And their lives and economies are running JUST FINE, thank you. And they are closer to the oil and all it's headaches, all it's myriad of peoples.
And other smaller nations. (Do you mean that by being "smaller", they just don't count. Is the oxy-moron "Size really matters" really a truth?)

>"The vast majority of protesters believe that by undermining the Bush administration or the United States - that their particular agenda will be put in a more powerful position."

I rather doubt that the MILLIONS who protested world wide this past weekend have an "agenda" to undermine the Bush administration. Rather they are exercising their right to free speech and are amking it known that there has to be alternatives to war.

>"Indeed if you listen carefully to the rhetoric of the protesters, you will see only anger and hatred - two emotions most incompatible with compassion and goodness."

C'mon SDAI....do you know what you sound like? THIS is RHETORIC if I ever heard it!
A lot of people (excluding you) see BUSH as the only threat to world peace because of HIS "anger and hatred". If you call dropping 300-800 cruise missiles on Bagdad "compassion and goodness", then I think you have missed the boat her.

>"the irony is not lost upon those who have broad enough perspectives to perceive it."

Your "broad perspective" is actually very narrow-minded.
Where's Mary Anne when I need her?!

>Understanding motivations and people requires a balanced view which is impervious to the weight of emotional swings of resentment.

Well thank you God for your balanced view which is impervious to the emotional swings of resentment.
I'm happy for you that understand our motivations.
Glad you're not in power.

Have a nice day.
Got fax?