moosenose

Actually, I wasn't trying to be mean. I saw his point as being that basically the costs of being an American were too high for him, in that he feels that he can't live morally or honestly in the US because of our government. I would never want him to feel that he could not live morally or honestly, but at the same time don't want to advocate that he commit another felony so that he could "feel better". (Remember, advocating that others commit a crime is generally a crime in and of itself, and "mass pardons" are much harder to come by nowadays then they were in 1976-1980.) What completely legal and morally acceptable alternatives does that leave for him? It's obvious that he cannot legally get Bush out of office before 2008 (and talk of impeaching Bush is laughable, we'll see government-subsidized legalized pot being given away in grocery stores before Bush gets impeached) , so he might very well feel more comfortable in a "safe" country.

As people keep pointing out, there are lots of "civilized" places people can live if they choose to that do not happen to be within the United States. If they don't want to, they generally don't even have to give up their citizenship, so coming back home after the '08 elections wouldn't even be a problem.

BTW, Canada is a very nice country, but the cost of living there can be pretty steep if you cannot legally be employed because you are a foreigner, especially if you are on a fixed income. I have friends who are currently living in the former Soviet Union, and they tell me that the cost of living in reasonable comfort is much, much lower there than in Canada, Europe, and much of Asia. Turkey, believe it or not, is also supposed to be a good place to live cheap.