I enjoy reading Petty Officer Stephen Johnson's letters and his latest contribution is no exception ("Relationship with pastor shows Obama's weakness", Mar. 18) Commenting on Rev. Jeremiah Wright's controversial remarks, Mr. Johnson concludes that not only is the pastor a racist but that Sen. Obama himself is unpatriotic and un-American.

Lest I be mistaken for another naïve Obama acolyte, let me be clear. Not only do I have deep reservations about the senator's convictions, I increasingly fear that a vote for Mr. Obama might be, at best, a vote for the lesser of two evils. Having said that, Mr. Johnson's attempt to portray criticism of the United States as unpatriotic is reprehensible. Moreover, it plays into the "chilling effect" on free speech in the post-9/11 climate.

It is unfortunate that the religious right has seized on Rev. Wright's remarks while ignoring the hate spewed by its own members. It was the late Rev. Jerry Falwell, for example, who said that Sept. 11 was God giving the US "what we deserve." President George W. Bush, a fundamentalist Christian in his own right, praised Rev. Falwell as "a great friend" of his administration.

Vigorous criticism of the government plays a vital and healthy role in any democracy. An America that carpet-bombs innocent people, tortures its prisoners and allows its poor to die hungry and without healthcare isn't the America our forefathers dreamt of. Too often, "God Bless America" is abused as a line of blind-and false-patriotism; instead, we should be asking God to guide America to the straight path -- to those noble principles of justice, morality and honor upon which it was founded and which many of us fear it has strayed from.

Hamdan A. Yousuf

Class of 2007