I have a confession to make: The letter "War cannot be ended immediately; be realistic" (April 8) under my name was based on an Oct. 9, 1969 letter in the Collegian by Robert O. Baker about the Vietnam War. The similarity between Vietnam and the present is something everyone seems to be noticing. Although the political situations are very different, the attitude of the country seems very much the same -- divided.

We have supposedly come so far, and yet we are still fighting the same battle with each other, and the same battle against countries with whom, for whatever reason, we do not agree. It is a matter of human nature that we set goals for ourselves in order to have something to strive for and once we have achieved those goals we must set more or else we fall into a static state.

And so, while we seem to be striding forward, making new conquests everyday, our motivation becomes cyclical, always needing a new goal to strive for. The impetus for our actions in Iraq was not simply needing something to do, but our method of solving the problem has not changed.

We are still fighting and dying to solve differences, and we are still fighting with each other about what is worth fighting and dying for.