by James Glaser
January 6, 2004

It's cold up here. Twenty below zero and I have to drive 42 miles to Bemidji. On the way, I see some guys working on a trailer somebody is towing up to Red Lake for an ice fishing house. A couple men from my hometown are helping two strangers put in a new axel bearing. This isn't a money making job, just two guys helping some out of towners that need it.

When I get to Bemidji I see three American Indians helping an old lady get her car started in the Hospital parking lot. Cold winters bring out the good in a lot of people. You always want to be prepared when the winter comes, but it would be very bad form to pass up a stranded motorist up here. People depend on each other and it doesn't matter what your skin color is or your social status. You break down and people will help you because they know you would do the same for them. In the cold, even a Lexus can break and it doesn't take all that long in a cold car before you are in real trouble.

Visitors from foreign countries that come here soon realize that Americans are pretty nice people. When all is said and done, most Americans look out for each other. Somebody has their home burn down and neighbors get together and have a fundraiser. Someone has a death in the family and soon food is arriving so that you don't have to think about cooking or shopping in your hour of grief.

Right now that Evil country Iran is hurting from an earthquake. America is right there offering help. If some country is having a drought, we will be there with food, water, and help with drilling wells. Americans like to help others and we are good at it.

Where ever you go in this world people will tell you that they like the American people, it is our government that they don't like.

There is a difference between helping someone in trouble like Iran and sticking your nose where it doesn't belong. We didn't just fly in to Iran with doctors and medical equipment. We asked first if they wanted our help, we were polite and people the world over appreciate that. It shows respect for their sovereignty.

America now has troops in over one hundred and twenty countries; some reports claim over a hundred and fifty. There are no foreign troops in the United States, we would never allow that. These countries that we have troops in might think that the American people are nice, but I can assure you they do not feel that way about our troops.

American troops are not nice. Our troops are arrogant. Our troops are young and they have no training on how to act as ambassadors for our country. They go out and get drunk and like young men every where, they start looking for women.

American "nice" is no where to be seen when we attack another country. We treat no one with respect. Women, children, and old people are all looked at as potential enemies.

When America was attacked by terrorists, Washington had to make up reasons for it. "They hate our freedom." They hate our democracy." I don't know if that is true, maybe, just maybe, they hate it when we stick our noses into their countries without asking first.

It might do us some good if we started treating the rest of the world the way we treat each other. The American people are nice people and the rest of the world knows that. If it isn't the American people that terrorists hate, then what do you think it is? I would have to say that we have butted in too many times in too many places.

If some other country is having internal problems we should let them work it out themselves and when they ask for help, then we can give it if we want.

We keep hearing about how terrible Saddam Hussein was and how he had killed tens of thousands of his own people. So What! It never bothered us when we were using him to fight Iran. It never bothered us when he was using our chemical weapons on Iran and his political enemies at home. It would not be a stretch for us to say we killed many thousands of the Iraqi people right along with Saddam. Not those nice American people, but those nice people's government. Remember everything Washington does is in our name. Nice huh?