On Tuesday, President Bush reminded Americans of the oath he took to uphold the Constitution and defend the great democratic experiment born nearly 227 years ago.

But the commander in chief is dangerously close to faulting in his duties and destroying the American dream.

If the president pre-emptively orders an invasion of Iraq and implements American military rule in that country for any period of time, he will have effectively helped the United States become everything it fought against for freedom more than two centuries ago. The United States is about to become the image of the arrogant and tyrannical imperial power it once loathed.

America will no longer be able to claim itself a messenger of liberty if it engages in a war without the support of the world. War is the ultimate form of terror and a country founded to defend freedom has no business starting one.

"We are a peaceful people," Bush said Tuesday.

Well, Mr. President, we beg to differ. A peaceful people doesn't start war for no other reason than deterring the possibility of future danger.

"The danger is clear - using chemical, biological or, one day, nuclear weapons obtained with the help of Iraq, the terrorists could fulfill their stated ambitions," Bush said.

One day? What about those countries which possess the possibility of launching a nuclear attack on America right now?

A peaceful people addresses present dangers and works peacefully to avoid future hazards.

War is an act of terror and should not be used except as a last resort.

Although the United Nations has made little effort in disarming Iraq since 1991, weapons inspectors say they have made greater strides in recent times. Progress is being made. And the majority of the U.N. Security Council seems to feel progress is acceptable enough not to provoke war at this time.

The world's peacekeeping organization is living up to its responsibilities despite U.S. criticism. It is U.S. leaders who have been unwilling to compromise at the Security Council table; and it is American diplomats who will bear the burden of setting the spark for a third world war if their arrogance is challenged.

The American view seems to be that the world's way should be our way. That is unacceptable.

"The United Nations Security Council has not lived up to its responsibilities, so we will rise to ours," Bush said Tuesday.

But it's not our responsibility to rid the world of "thugs and killers" by becoming thugs and killers ourselves.

It is America's responsibility to live up to the U.N. Charter it agreed to and work with the world to ensure peace. War, although sometimes the price of peace, is not the tool of peace.

America was founded to defend democracy in the world, not to engage in terror.

If Bush launches an unprovoked attack on Iraq, he will effectively declare the United States is the world's newest and most powerful terrorist and will have used the Declaration of Independence as toilet paper.

If Bush's plan for war is carried out, American citizens are going to need more than God's blessing to save them from the terror that will unfold.