First of all, I would like to point out that I am neither a Republican nor a Democrat when it comes to weighing in on political issues, but I do feel it necessary for me to write this concerning Bush's inaugural speech.

I don't know if the people who were protesting actually took the time to listen to our president's speech, but I feel this is a true message of hope for our country and the world. For too long, the world has repeated the mistakes of the past by sitting idly by while injustice and tyranny flourish on this earth. Granted, I was extremely upset to know that we went into Iraq under false pretenses, but this is something that should have happened a long time ago.

Was it wrong that we went into Afghanistan and ousted a tyrannical government? Was it wrong to go to Iraq and bring a dictator to justice who ruled with an iron fist by instilling fear into his people? Is it wrong to help a people get back on their feet and give them a chance at something they have never had before? These are the questions I pose to the critics of George Bush.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said that "injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere," and I think that holds even truer in this world today. It is time for more people to step outside the bubble they live in and realize the freedoms you enjoy were not just laid on your doorstep. Our country fought long and hard to win these freedoms, and we should help any country in need of it to find its own voice as we have.

Joe Quillin
accounting junior