LW writes And despite the fact that she verbally abused me all through my childhood, abandoned me at critical times and told me she wished I'd never been born, I'd be willing to do it, if not for the fact that it would solve nothing. My mother is a champion grudge holder, never forgiving anyone for their transgressions, so why would she change now?

Uhm, who's the champion grudge holder here? Your college age son got in a physical fight with his grandfather, a man who is in his what, sixties or seventies? And you're defending him and blaming it on your father? Sounds like the nut hasn't fallen far from the tree. LW, step back, take a deep breath, look at the big picture. No one in your family is on your side in this situation. Your son is a f-up. Time to face the facts and stop whining. You didn't turn out well and neither did your son. Stop blaming everything on your parents, or guess what? You're the next blamee in line. Concentrate on making your son a responsible citizen, if it's not too late.

At my 10th high school reunion, everyone was in impress-others mode. There was a roomful of braggerts swaggering around, drinking and talking too much. Ugh.

At my 20th high school reunion, everyone was genuine and nice. I truly enjoyed seeing them and hearing about their lives. We all swore we'd keep in touch, then didn't.

At my 30th high school reunion, I didn't go. Because I didn't really know those people except for four years many many years ago.

Go and have a good time. Forget it the next morning. In the overall scheme of things, it has absolutely no meaning.

Class of '70

"George HW Bush, after being a Congressman, a CIA chief, a Vice President and then President of the United States doesn't know any American experts in geopolitics he can recommend to tutor his son? And George W Bush won't listen to Brent Scowcroft and untold other Americans who were in the Reagan and the Bush Sr. administrations, but he'll listen to a man who is the grandson of the King of Saudi Arabia, the son of a Crown Prince of a backwards, brutal dictatorship; the nephew of a man who controls the Saudi secret police and who has publicly stated Jews are responsible for 9/11? Bandar is also the husband of a woman who financially supported members of the 9/11 hijacking crew while they were in the United States. And he is given the task of tutoring someone in the art of being an American president."

A small group of individuals is stockpiling resources: oil, water, eventually even air, with the view to controlling everything on earth. They are very close to achieving their objective. They know and trust one another. Their trust isn't based on national interests, but on their knowledge of each other's goals being identical as their own self-interests. There are enough resources for this small group to share amongst themselves, but the average citizen of the world need not apply. The end-game will be the fight between the individuals of this group, but we aren't there yet.

Just think. If your child needs medicine, if your city has been hit by a natural disaster and you have nowhere to turn for help, if the trucks that supply the grocery stores can't run because of lack of fuel, what would you pledge in loyalty and support to those who control the resources that could help you? Who would you turn on if there weren't enough resources for you, your family, your neighbors, your extended community?

These people have no morals. They don't care about the "citizens" in their nations. It's all about control and power at a level most of us have never contemplated.

Peanut lady.

"A lot of people are in the military for life, because of their economic situation."

Interesting. Kerry essentially said the same thing and is being reamed for it. The average soldier is nothing but canon-fodder for the powerful elite.

"LW, you also have the option of going to her pastor."

I plowed through the letters wondering when someone would arrive at a common sense solution.

LW, your mother is verging on being the person for whom tithes are collected. If her clergyperson is made aware of her situation and is a compassionate reputable practitioner, he/she will know how to encourage your mother to show charity in a more financially appropriate way. And you LW, could volunteer to accompany your mother to perform charitable works in ways that accomodate your atheism. Serving food at a homeless shelter, taking meals to shut-ins, volunteering in low-income schools, are all ways to give back to society. It doesn't have to be monetary.

You'll always have Paris.

do intelligent people keep subscribing to the NY Times?

"Appearing before the state Senate's Nominations Committee, a Democratic senator asked Rove about how long he had known the local FBI chief. "Ah, Senator," replied Rove, "it depends. Would you define 'know' for me?""

Is Rove implying that he's been doing the local FBI chief?

I think it's cute.

If she wasn't covert, how was her career ruined by being identified? Wouldn't she still be employed, if it didn't matter that everyone knew she was with the CIA?