It is only by reflecting on these experiences that we are able to formulate our truths and find the social remedies to ensure that such atrocities never occur again. But instead to reflect and become more intelligent on what to do next, we are being bombarded by opinion polls; and these opinion polls become the background support for the actions of our inept politicians and governments.

After President Bush's speech to the joint session of Congress, the opinion polls revealed a 90% popular support for the president, one of the highest ever support for any president. President Bush's speech was a declaration of war against Terrorism, yet we don't have a definition of Terrorism as I ask myself if the Palestine children who aspire to become martyrs and suicide bombers are terrorists.

American military forces are being deployed to wage a war against Terrorism for the simple reason that opinion polls reveal the feeling of revenge of the American public. This is wrong since we must learn to lead our countries for the better by freeing people from poverty, from ignorance, from illness, from tyranny; instead, we are using opinion polls to wage a war against Terrorism, and in doing so we are allying ourselves with tyrannical governments.

It is a time for changes, and rather than wage a war on Terrorism, it is time that our politicians and governments stop taking actions on the basis of daily opinion polls, it is time that they stop their hypocritical behaviour to fight tyranny and terrorism when they themselves are tyrannical and terrorist, and it is time that they stop the spiral use of war to end wars.

References

Transcript of President Bush's address, CNN, September 20, 2001 http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/09/20/gen.bush.transcript

Foreign Policy Shift: The Terrible Trade-Offs, by Jim Lobe and Abid Aslam, September 25, 2001 http://www.fpif.org/commentary/0109tradeoff.html

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Editor's Note: Mario sent this piece off to Lorie Terry and got this immediate response which seems appropriate to include her response with this article.

The media is also playing a huge role in how the events are unfolding. It is sureal. They are fanning the flames of panic that are rising out of this tragic event. They are only showing the side of the story they want us to see, the patriotic side of our natures. Get ready, let's fight attitudes... that seem to hypnotise you into feeling aggresive towards each other, and that war is the right thing to do.

Let's hope cooler heads prevail, and come up with some better solutions before we become hostages of hate and fear. Thanks for letting me get this off my chest.

Lorie Terry