I may be thirty-mumble years old, but I still take comfort in talking to Mom. Since she was a teenager during WWII, she's got an interesting perspective. (She was in a movie theatre when they interrupted the show to tell the audience about Pearl Harbor.) She says that, back then, all the other nations either ignored or appeased Hitler, and, "look what happened," she says.

I can see that. But, I say, what about China? What about North Viet Nam? And why didn't we do anything about the atrocities of the Taliban-governed Afghanistan? She didn't say anything about China, said we did eventually get around to Afghanistan, and that we needed to do something about 'Nam.

I'm still not 100% convinced. Maybe I'm more of a peace-nic then I thought. Yes, my mum is a Eisenhower Republican, but she's actually very reasonable about most things. Ialso try to be reasonable, but am pretty much apolitical. It made her mad when I told her I voted for...oh, who did I vote for? Oh yeah, the Libertarians.