THE PRESIDENT IS NOT TELLING THE TRUTH

President Bush and his administration repeatedly term Saddam Hussein an "imminent threat" to the peace and security of the United States. Thus, goes the rest of the mantra, Hussein must be disposed of under the slogan of a regime change in Iraq. If what Mr. Bush asserts is accurate, then the President has been derelict in his sworn duty to defend our country. Imminent, by any definition, means immediate, like yesterday; it never means next year. Nevertheless, it is almost 14 months since 9-11 and nothing has been done to spike the imminent threat.

My home is adjacent to Beverly Hills which, were I Hussein, would be my target of choice. The city is 1. filled with Jews; 2. who are American, and 3. most work in the evil entertainment industry which churns out sex laden filthy movies that are both offensive to and corrupting of the peaceful people of Islam and the Middle East. What better place to destroy? Turn Beverly Hills into a modern day pillar of salt. Three targets for the price of one weapon of mass destruction. I should be petrified by the President's words but I am not. Neither is anyone else I know. Do you know anyone, anyone at all, in the United States, who feels imminently threatened by Hussein's military might? There are no air raid drills training citizens to do the right thing when Iraqi Scuds rain down on Beverly Hills. No resident of Beverly Hills or of any other American city, town or hamlet is the least bit concerned about the imminent threat of Iraqi missiles or Iraqi anything else.

In truth, there is no imminent threat to the United States from Hussein, Iraq, Iran or any of those pre-historic thugs that grow wherever liberty is in absentia. There is certainly the probability of the bin Laden wackos blowing up a mall or of their concocting any number of different destructive acts, But, Mr. Bush, there is no imminent threat. You do yourself and the country a great disservice by saying there is. Your own dawdling is proof enough that immanency is not present.

That said, Sir, take out Hussein. You and the Congress concur on that point. And forget the United Nations; it's a useless relic from a bygone era. But, Mr. President, please, don't lie. We just endured eight long years of that.

HATE CRIMES

I hate hate-crime laws. They represent another outgrowth of feel-good legislation which serves a pernicious purpose.

Example: In Montana, a couple of crazy skin-head types tied a gay man to a fence post and beat and killed him because he was a homosexual. Indicted for murder, the DA's office in that country town instantly spotted a hate crime as did every media outlet in the country.

Example: A crazy white guy shot up a Jewish school in the Los Angeles area a couple of years ago. Indicted for murder enhanced by the additional charge of a hate crime as it was intentionally directed against a religion and an ethnic group. The DA's office spotted the white guy's hate right away as did every media outlet in the country.

Example: A crazy Egyptian Muslim shoots up the El Al counter at LAX some months back, murdering unlucky flyers. Indicted for murder but no hate crime. The DA's office can't see any hate crime here nor can any major media outlets.

Example: A few years ago, in Kansas, two black youths captured and held at gunpoint three young white males and two young white females. The women were repeatedly raped and sodomized by their captors; the young male captives were forced to perform sexual acts with the female captives. All were beaten and four were killed. One woman, thought to be dead, survived. The two criminals were indicted for murder. The DA's office could see no hate crime there despite testimony of hate honky taunts throughout the night of horror. In fact, the local DA's office specifically found there to be no hate involved. Nor did any major media outlet.

Example: Recently, a black Muslim and his black accomplice held the Washington D.C. area hostage by random, sniper killings of ordinary citizens. All the genius types on the tube saw this as the work of a young white male; a typical militia type. There were profiles galore to this effect. (Profiles? Al, Jesse, Maxine; ACLU; Norm Mineta: Help!) Nearly every state in the Union has indicted these guys for murder. Not a single DA's office has said a word about a hate crime. Many media types won't even say John Mohammed. They call him Mr. Williams and refer to him as an Army veteran, not a hate-filled Muslim whose acquaintances all say he hated America and Americans.

Is there a pattern here?