[Cyrien]

Impossible. As soon as you do anything like that for the wrong reasons, the process becomes irrevocably tainted. Motivation is everything.

Then I suppose that everything that humans has ever done is tainted, which would go a long way to explaining the world and its conditions.

Do you believe that anyone in a position of power does anything without some personal gain?
The argument could even be made that all people perform all actions with something to gain.

Saints and the like? Theres is the ultimate selfish motivation. Do good and get the ultimate reward, or do bad and get the ultimate punishment. Heaven vs Hell. What choice do you make?

Also there are social pressures at work. If you do good, people admire that if you do bad they don't and may even start to hate you.

I cannot accept the position that motivation is everything. If that is true then some truly horrific acts that were done for "good purposes" are acceptable. Motivation being everything holds forth the motto that the Ends always justify the means. That leads to a taint and corruption of the goal.

In my world action always speaks louder than words, or thought.

To sum it all up to do the good thing for the wrong reason is far better than to do the wrong thing for the right reason.

As for Bush and Hitler... don't make me laugh.
You want to talk terrorist attacks... ok. Show that Bush was the mastermind of 9/11 and then I might accept a parrallel there. I could go on and on like this but it just isn't worth it.

I most assuredly do not support Bush. But demonizing him (as comparisons of him and Hitler most assuredly do) is neither accurate nor usefull. If I wanted to I could draw up a list of accurate similarities between Hitler and just about every world leader currently out there and almost all of the past U.S. presidents. Violations of human rights? Using a major event as an excuse for something? Please. Don't be so naive. There are literally thousands if not millions of examples of world leaders of every walk of life doing just that on one scale or another.

I think this will most likely be my Last post to this topic. Not much point in arguing over something that so many people already have their mind made up about. Same reasons I don't generally argue religion.