NOW THAT WE'VE DEALT WITH ONE EVIL

and continue to deal with the other, connected one--al Qaeda--it's time we look at another. Our fifth column is doing terrible damage, to our own war resolve and to our image abroad.

I'm speaking of Michael Moore, whose latest book is wildly popular in Europe. Especially Germany, where 1 in 3 under age 30 believe that we attacked ourselves on 9-11.

In the past six months, Wenzel [Mielke], a teenager from the eastern German town of Strausberg has read four books by his new favorite author - American filmmaker, humorist, and vocal critic of President Bush - Michael Moore. Wenzel recently attended one of two sold-out appearances by Mr. Moore in one of Berlin's largest concert halls. "Not only do I really like what Michael Moore is saying, but I can really imagine that Bush had something to do with the [Sept. 11] attacks," says the ninth-grader. "It could, of course, be a coincidence - but a really good one for Bush; it is too good an excuse for his wars. The Americans needed a good reason to attack so that they could exploit other countries for oil or whatever."

The US Embassy in Berlin has begun to take notice of the increased wariness toward the US among young Germans like Wenzel. Citing a fear that an entire generation of young Germans is coming of age politically amid an atmosphere of anti-Americanism - and what officials are calling a growing potential for violent anti-Americanism - the Embassy's public-affairs department has recently started sending Americans into German schools to talk to children and youth about life in the US.

Michael Moore obviously has no conscience, and the words he writes today will be with us for decades as we live down his nonsense. His crankery has achieved the level of "common knowledge" in Germany, and similar theories have achieved a kind of critical mass in France. Moore is a detestable creep whose poorly stitched-together theories discredit him among people who can think critically and objectively examine evidence. Sadly, though, we seem to be in the minority these days. But Germany isn't full of idiots--why are German youths latching on to theories like Moore's?

"I think that some - not all - of the people who believe in these theories see a certain pardon for Germany's history there," says [Klaus] Hillenbrand (editor in chief of an influential Berlin daily, Die Tageszeitung). "They see that Germany is still measured against the Holocaust, and they have now found a point where the Americans are also very evil and that we Germans then don't have to feel inferior to them."

It's not fair to continue to judge all of Germany by the Holocaust, and I don't think most people do. But as long as they insist on taking the wrong side of history, Germany is and will continue to be inferior to us, to Britian, to Australia, to Japan and to any nation or people that defends freedom. And any American who feeds on the fears and suspicions of anti-Americans while calling himself an American should have his citizenship revoked. Are we or are we not at war? If we are, it's clear that Michael Moore has chosen sides--he's with anyone who's against us. If Germany loves Michael Moore so much, they can have him.