Professor Stauber invoked the old fantasy that our government represents the people’s interests. Professor Lant rationalized the 1991 slaughter of 200,000 Iraqis and the poisoning of their air and water as having been necessary to preserve the dictatorship in Saudi Arabia. Professor Vaux urged us not to “glorify” dissent nor to “mock” our freedom. He is perhaps thankful that our own government has made mockery enough of it for everyone.

A few students’ questions, taking about three minutes, got closer to the truth than an hour of professorial obfuscation. That’s probably because they were the ones actually looking for some truth. Professor Vaux indeed summed things up by assuring us that this is a “very complicated” situation, perhaps implying that only an elite few are capable of plumbing its depths.

I’m apparently not one of them, for I cannot even figure out what’s complicated about mass murder for power and profit.