One comment about hatred...

Hatred is a base deritive of fear, fear of rejection, fear of being wrong in your beliefs, fear of persecution. Notice that most people that have an intolerance of others beliefs, generally go straight for the hatred card? Displaying their base fear. Yet then again, fear is born of ignorance, why should the rational public expect anything less? No matter what rational, well spoken belief may be articulated, it will be assaulted by those who feel the need to express their fear. I say Freedom, I will be assaulted by those who accuse my great country of being an oppressor. BUT Who gave them that right? THe right for dissent? The Self Same Upholder of Freedom, they deny. Those that will dispouse their sovereign nation, the nation that GIVES THEM THE RIGHT to protest, are those that least deserve their nations support.Yet I encourage this great nation to support them. After all, this is a nation built of freedom. Far be it from me to deny them theirs, though they insist on denying that same nation, or it's citizens of other beliefs, the same rights. It was once said that a nations greatness was measured by it's tolerance for adversity, yet now, that same adversity is the weapon that is destroying us. Nikita Kruschev said, while pounding the podium of the United Nations, with the heel of his shoe. That he would destroy the United States without firing a shot.(paraphrased, yer accurate) Surprise! THe sonuvabitch was right! This cancer of dissent is eating us alive, devouring us from within, allowing those with a dissenting view, the power to destroy the strong fabric that gave them the right to oppose, with the ironic right of their power to oppose. To those that want freedom, remember Amnesty International, and the reason it was formed, not out of liberal excersise, but out of a sense of freedom. I await the denial of my freedom on this objurgate....Yet I welcome, and invite those opinions, that would oppress my right to free speech. Objurgate On!

Cash, I think I am afraid of you.

Hehe, why's that?

The saying you're referring to is that a country's strength is defined by its tolerance of diversity, not adversity. You seem to be saying that minorities who fight for the pluralistic society envisioned by the founders of this nation are mucking it up for the rest of you who want to silence those with points of view you disagree with? Am I reading that right? Dissent is not a cancer, Cash. It's the lifeblood of healthy democracy and representative government. Those who wish to silence dissent or simplisticly label it as nothing more than fear are the real cancer. The type of person who is quick to label anyone opposed to the war as unpatriotic or unamerican are what's wrong with this country. The "you're either with us or against us" crowd are what's wrong with this country. The "One nation, under god, and the rest of you shut the hell up" crowd are what's wrong with this country. You're right that intolerance is largely a product of indoctrinated fear. I think you're just pointing the finger at the wrong people.

"Diversity"!? "Representative government"!? Chip's a terrorist! Get him!

Catherine,

I bet he's a Buddhist extremist!

LOL. I might become one just so I can say it

Hah, well to get serious for a second, I come across many many people who get all freaked out when I say something like, "our lawmaking system is based on representative democracy." Around that point, a lot of people start screaming at me, telling me how it is, in fact, citizens who make laws directly. Isn't that what we all learned in, like, 9th grade civics?

Be a Dictatorship of One! I like it

To paraphrase a famous comedian - what does a buddhist extremist do?
goes in the middle of the streets, covers himself in gas and *poof* self barbeque. People killing themselves in the name of god are going "What the f. are you doing?", and the buddhist goes "making you deal with your crap!"

Are there any compassionate conservatives on here? interesting term that, sounds like a volvo with a gun rack....

a compassionate concervative is simply a liberal with lots and lots of money and they wanna keep theirs. but they want the tax payers to pay for every person that doesnt have enouhg gumpsion to work for money themselves. people say how hard it is to make it in the economy today but mcdonalds pays 8 bucks an hour thats over 300 a week i beleive im too tired for math but if you worked at two places that would be over 2k a month. not much time for fun but hey thats life get a job. ya know what i mean?

Hm. I, a "compassionate conservative", would not fit that mold. I don't think the taxes are legit, and I certainly don't believe in the communistic direction we have taken things.