Hiroshima

San Mateo Daily Journal
ThursdayAugust 09 2007 Home Local News State / National / World Sports Opinion / Letters Business Arts / Entertainment Community Forum Archives Advertise With Us About Us
Letters American’s short-term memory
Editor,Hiroshima marked the 62nd anniversary of the world’s first atomic bombing with condemnation of a global trend toward nuclear proliferation. The wars and atrocities the United States has perpetrated and the weapons it has developed are simply horrendous. America has been an agent of death and destruction in many third-world nations, almost always leaving them in far worse shape than it found them.The United States is no paragon of virtue. However, the funny thing is that most Americans do not realize it, or if they do, then they do not generally care much about it. They maintain a mental image of America, the righteous, the virtuous, spreading peace and democracy everywhere it goes. Maybe it is because they have such a short attention span and memory. As one journalist commented, a short memory is a great boost to self-esteem. It helps when you can so easily forget the past and tune out of reality.Ted Rudow III,MAMenlo Park