Critics have labeled as "racist" the Department of Justice's upcoming "interviews" with 5000 men who may or may not have information about people who may or may not be terrorists. Well, don't you believe It. We have the list of interviewees right here, and we can assure you that it is extremely diverse. Here are just a few of the names:
 
 
...oh, wait a minute...sorry, this is next month's list.
 
Our mistake.
 
Moving on: concerned with the mounting public perception that he is trampling civil liberties in the name of security, Attorney General John Ashcroft urges a change of perspective: instead of thinking of the rights being lost, he urges us to consider the safety being gained -- think of it as "America-Plus."
 
And speaking of wishful thinking, this week's Fearless Fable, traces the growth of religious fundamentalism -- from inspiration to desperation. In "The Adamant Beetle," we see the truth of Winston Churchill's observation that "A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject."
 
Next week, the First Insomniac has a really bad dream. But at least there's no ghost of Christmas Future in this one.
 
And to those concerned that the President seems increasingly given to inane and tepid remarks, we say "compared to what?" Remember that the president is a deeply superficial thinker, a profoundly uncomplicated man who always speaks straight from the heart of whomever has told him what to say.
 
Later, in the continuing saga that is the New America,
 
Hank