"The period between 9/11 and Iraq was not a good time for America. There wasn't a robust discussion of what we were doing," Matthews said.

"If we stop trying to figure out the other side, we've given up. The person on the other side is not evil -- they just have a different perspective."

Thankfully Michelle Malkin has volunteered to help Chris find his perspective.

I wonder if the citizens of Ammann, Jordan would share Matthews' view that if we just tried to understand Zarqawi that perhaps we could all get along and sing campfire songs.

UPDATE:  As much as I want to I can't over look this part of Matthews' comments:

When asked what caused the U.S. to invade Iraq, he said it was a combination of factors.

"I think the father-son relationship with the Bushes is part of it. I think the oil thing is part of it," Matthews said of the current president and his father, George Bush Sr., who was president during the Gulf War more than a decade ago.

"Our friendship with Israel (is part of it) and 9-11 created a kind of crazy Zeitgeist in the country. Bush wanted to do something big. It couldn't just be tracking down al-Qaida. He wanted a big bang. I think it's a mixture of these things."

I guess the 14 UN Resolutions Saddam ignored and the 500 tons of Uranium we recovered from Iraq (1.8 tons partially enriched) wasn't a factor?  Or Iraq's involvement with Al-Quida which was verified by the 9-11 Comission, or the WMD we are just now learning about wasn't a factor either.

And the "oil thing" is a part of it.  What, did Chris just pre-screen the new Clooney movie?  I guess Bush decided he didn't feel financially secure being President and all, so he needed a golden parachute?