"We are following this path deeper and deeper into absurdity."

Almost invariably when I read articles on terrorism, the theme is confined to security and law enforcement. Rarely does anyone broach the real problem: why terrorists target us. (I realize Patrick Smith is dealing with airport security, so this is not a complaint about this column specifically.)

As reader John Sutcliffe pointed out, we need to change our policies towards Muslim populations, or this insanity will never end. How ironic that this "liquid explosive" plot was divulged while Israel, with US weapons and US backing, was busy killing hundreds of Lebanese civilians in a grossly disproportionate and illegal (if you believe in the validity of the Geneva Conventions) response to a border raid by Hizollah. Can we not put 2 and 2 together? No one hates us because we are free to pop a Bud any time we want. Our actions, our decisions, all carry consequences. We use a blatant double-standard in our dealings with the region, allowing Israel to flout UN Security Council Resolution 242 with impunity, carry out a nuclear weapons program, etc., but destroy Iraq under the bogus pretext that they did not comply with UN resolutions, and hound Iran for working on a nuclear program. We support Israel's de-facto annexation of the West Bank, but attacked Iraq (in '91) because they attempted to annex Kuwait. As if that weren't bad enough we'll support any Muslim leader who toes our line, no matter how despotic, hateful and un-democratic they are to their own people (see Saddam, pre-1991, or the Shah of Iran, among many others). That is why we are hated.

I challenge any reader: Put yourselves in the shoes of the average Arab or Persian Muslim. Would you love us? Or would your blood boil? I know what the honest answer is. It will take years to undo this damage. It will take real concessions by Israel and the US, but it can be done. And it would ultimately be cheaper and safer than maintaining our bloated but largely ineffectual national security apparatus. And maybe, just maybe, we might salvage some of those freedoms we so crow about but, out of fearfulness and timidity, we are so eager to throw away.

O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

How can anyone of us sing the verses of our National Anthem with a straight face anymore? We are fast becoming the land of the not-so-free and the home of the timid and fearful. Those who accept these irrational measures as a necessary price for security -- along with those who attack any effort to preserve our freedoms at home as treasonous and pro-terrorist -- deserve their fate. Just please don't take me down with you.

I always find it amazing that these truly offensive people, who seem to always find time to legislate morality while they are busy destroying people's lives with their know-nothing policies, are always the first ones to be offended by some little inconsequential trifle.

Not only did these guys yammer on and on about things that had nothing to do with the game (Jamie Foxx, Tom Cruise, fantasy leagues), but we were subjected to seeing them way too much. I like to keep my eyes on the field, thank you, because what goes on between snaps can be interesting and relevant to the game. Quite simply put it was a dreadful viewing experience.

Also taking away from the game experience were the all-to-frequent cuts to the crowd and the always pleasing owner shots. Again: I want to see the game! Why is it so hard for this crew to comprehend this?

Many out there are suggesting high level languages like Python, Ruby, HTML (which is not a language!), PHP and Java; but all these have a serious drawback. If the object is to learn how a computer works, then you cannot use a language that hides the computer from you! Languages like Python tend to hold your hand. B&D languages like Java force you to do things the "right" way (even if it is wrong), even going so far as to dictate the layout of your source tree. All this gets in the way.

I have an alternative suggestion: Use good old C. Yes, it is easy to get things wrong, like mismanage memory and other resources. But if you really wish to understand how computers work then making mistakes is an essential part of the learning experience. How, for instance, are you to learn that memory is a finite resource that must be carefully managed, if it is transparently done for you? If you understand that memory allocation is not a cheap operation, then you won't commit the silly errors I've seen in Java code where people allocate memory within a loop, when a stack variable would have sufficed.

And C is simple enough to get started in, but flexible and powerful enough to grow with. Start by writing simple console or command line programs for Windows, Mac or Linux. (A simple command-line "hello world" program takes no more than 3-4 lines of code!) Learn flow control, looping, subroutines. Learn binary logic. C can do all this. If Mr. Brin's son is really into computers, he will love the level of tinkering that C allows.

Good C compilers for all platforms, commercial and open source, can be readily had. Give it some consideration. And once you understand the computer and wish to do more complex things with it, you will have a much greater appreciation for those high-level scripting languages.

(I am a professional programmer who first started out with an Atari 800 with the OSS Mac/65 assembler and Action! language cartriges. Now that was fun!)