Of course I meant American detainees (the three hikers). Do they currently hold any other Americans?

You going to be a jackass or are you going to take me up on my offer to come stand beside you and do humanitarian work in Afghanistan? All I need you to do is point me in the correct direction. Where you go I go. Then we can share our first-hand experiences with the world.

Here's my e-mail. rrheard@gmail.com.

All this back and forth between you and me is getting insufferable. You think we can bomb and kill our way to security and stability. I don't. Time will tell.

Maybe in a decade or two we'll have a "near-imperfect-utopia" like Angola and we can debate the merits of our financially backbreaking "foreign military interventionism".

Ondolette--serious question--do you think we can financially maintain our current level of military involvement all over the world and simultaneously address our problems at home.

Or should we be bringing good government and universal health care and better education to all the benighted peoples of the planet with American taxpayer dollars before we bring it to Americans?

Because I'll tell you what, I have no job, no health care, no home of my own, no retirment savings, and $100K in student loan debt with no viable future at this point (or maybe you think I'll work all that student loan debt off, buy my healthcare, buy a home, and save enough for retirment, if I start working double shifts at Burger King . . . is it wrong for me as an American to ask my government to assist with American's needs before those of Iraq and Afghanistan?

You're starting to come off like a serious asshole from my perspective.

In a self-centered world where we all are so focused on our own meaningless little job assignments:

-Roller Derby Queen

-Real Estate Editor

-Entertainer

So I guess your definition of "meaningful service" is anyone willing to kill other humans halfway around the world while trespassing on their property because other people tell them to?

That's a surreal moral compass. I'm sure you have a link to Dr. Mengele's MySpace too.

He was a doctor you know. That's a profession dedicated to "helping" people.

You do realize that you did draw a false equivalency. Right?

And thanks for the Nugget Point. Almost as valuable as giving me some of your smelly belly button lint or fromunder cheese.

Thanks but keep it to yourself. Or maybe share them with LondonLad.

Maybe if you scrape together enough of both you can send him a Nut Encrusted Lint Filled Cheddar Fromunder Cheese Ball for the holidays. I'm sure the asylum would have to probe it for sharp objects but then they'd probably let him have it to smear all over his face and conduct gravity tests with given that it's a special time of year for special people.

On the other hand, the regime in Iran stands in sharp contrast to the United States - with a long and sordid history of terrorism, hostage taking, murder and so forth. Iran has repeatedly been labeled a rogue state in the international community.

I assume you meant Iran has a "long and sordid history" as follows X, Y, Z rather than America.

Nevertheless it all depends upon how you subjectively define "terrorism" (US's 50 plus years in the region directly/indirectly doing all sorts of nasty stuff (from deposing duly elected leaders, proxie wars, arming every nutball in the region) to Iran and its neighbors vs. accusations that Iran has "funded" third party "terrorism" none of which to our knowledge has targeted the US directly (oh yeah except there were some "brass cones" IED parts the Iranians allegedly sold Iraqi "insurgents/terrorists/shia brothers" that need significant assembly which in no way compares to the actual fully functioning arms and gas American interests have sold to lots of people including Sadaam).

Hostage taking (the 1 time embassy event, the British pontoon navy boat thing all returned unharmed mostly and a few assorted trespassers vs. a systemic program of demonizing Iran while kidnapping and bombing 1000s, 10,000s, of Muslims of all stripes/sects all over the planet).

"Murder" (too many to count attributable directly to US actions but here's a few including: shooting down an Iranian civilian airliner, green lighting America's Israeli poodle for bombing runs, funding/arming both sides of the Iraq/Iran War, kissing Sunni Saudi ass which does actually fund terrorism all over the planet including inside Shia Iran, Iraq War, Afghanistan War . . . ) v. not one instance of murder of an American I can directly attribute to Iranian hands, . . . and as far as "so forth" goes well America's just about got it hands down on the "so forth" and "stuff".

But you keep drinking the koolaid bro.

But you're right we're not the Great Satan we're the Great Hypocrites, or The Great Liberators of Other's Wealth, or The Great Protector of Our Interests On or Under Your Lands and Sands, The Great Deciders Who Determine Who Runs Your Country (so long as you pick someone from the pre-approved American list . . . that's called "Outsourcing Your Democracy").

Time for your meds.

I'm going to become an opponent of socialized health care for Americans if you're any indication of how the British system treats its mentally ill veterans/civilians. (more therapy and less internet time).

I'm going to get smokes. Crazy British Conspiracy Guy might go over great on the BBC but not around here. You're like Benny Hill without the slapping of a bald guy and gratuitous flashing of breasts for laughs.

Like the skits that would have come from the Python boys if they'd all been lobotomized.