Why is Iran developing nuclear weapons? The answer is simple and obvious: the United States won't attack countries like North Korea that have nuclear weapons. Saddam Hussein cooperated with the U. N. inspectors and got rid of Iraq's nuclear weapons. Bush's response was one of the greatest military blunders of all time. He demolished Iraq with 5000-pound bunker-busting bombs.

Iran and others quickly learned the lesson: if you want to prevent U. S. armed forces from invading your country, develop nuclear weapons. Whatever control the United Nations had in preventing the spread of nuclear weapons has now evaporated.

As predicted from the start by knowledgeable persons, the Iraq war has destabilized the entire region. A government in Iraq that was willing to cooperate with U. N. weapons inspectors has been replaced by a bloody civil war. Thousands of Americans have been killed or have lost limbs. The United States has no control over the present regime in Iraq, and has no way of stopping a probable alliance with extremist Iran.

Hundreds of billions of dollars of unpaid war cost have been added to the national debt, to be paid for in the future by our sons and daughters.

In response to the sanctimonious accusation "Saddam was a monster, he killed his own people by the thousands." The United States did the very same thing in the 1861-1865 Civil War. Does that make Abraham Lincoln a monster?

Saddam Hussein was a tyrant, but tyrannical governments exist all over the world. Saddam kept extremist Shi-ite Muslims under control. Bush has allowed followers of Osama Bin Laden to take over the Iraqi government, and all Bush can do is lecture them. Hussein fought against extremists in the Iraq-Iran war. His reward was the destruction of his country and putting him on trial for his life. No wonder so many Muslims believe the United States is a snake in the grass.

The bottom line is very simple: The United States and the world are much worse off than in pre 9-11, and Bush alone is to blame.