Rich beat me to it, but I’ve got to mention this:

Four years after 9/11 and the “crazy zeitgeist” that permeated the United States, most Americans have still not learned to know their enemies instead of just hating them, U.S. political journalist Chris Matthews says.
In a speech to political science students at the University of Toronto yesterday, the host of the CNBC current affairs show Hardball had plenty of harsh words for U.S. President George W. Bush, as well as the political climate that has characterized his country for the past few years.
“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.”

No — a “different perspective” is when you start to believe the conspiracy theories of the far-left. The perpetrators of 9/11 were evil.

UPDATE / BLEG: Does anyone know where I can find a transcript of Matthews’ remarks?

UPDATE II: This link has more of Matthews’ remarks, including the trifecta of dumb theories about Iraq (in bold):

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.”

Gee Chris. You think it had anything to do with the genuine concern that Saddam would acquire a nuclear weapon and sell it to al-Qaeda? It’s hard to believe that a once-astute observer of American politics has become so ignorant.