How patriotic is the reactionary who demonizes opponents of the attack on Iraq? And, when did opposition to this war become tantamount to treason -- and not the patriotic and moral responsibilities of those conscientious objectors so dissatisfied with the current state of affairs?

How can we disregard our actions and start to believe that we're the innocent victims, rather than, instigators of global terrorism? Therefore, many "terrorist attacks" are nothing more than the chickens coming home to roost ... retributive justice for our original sins.

We will never prevail against terrorism by "annihilating" the masses; nor will we prevail by sacrificing our moral solvency when the time is convenient. By auctioning off our humanity and replacing it with hollowed rationalizations, or by cloaking our own fears in sanctimonious piety, we become the terrorists.

We use language like, "the battle of good versus evil," "what we're dealing with is like an infection," "these people," "they" and "radical Islamists" to justify our own inhumanity and xenophobia.

The goals of our struggle should be against a philosophy of hate that supports and propels terrorism -- a universal philosophy that urges people to board planes with bombs, blow up federal buildings in Oklahoma, kill others in God's name and shout death threats and racial epithets from darkened Beaver Hall windows -- not solely against a people who are as victimized by hate and ignorance as we are.

In the world of terrorism, America is equally culpable. We must recognize our rightful place and bring our troops home.