The United States’ march toward war with Iraq &045; and the opposition that has spawned among some nations &045; have sparked some interesting responses from the American people.

Over the past several weeks, some people have chosen to protest the war, using familiar phrases like &uot;Make love, not war&uot; and &uot;No blood for oil.&uot;

At Duke University, professors are hosting a film festival of movies produced in so-called &uot;Axis of Evil&uot; countries, so that, the teachers say, their students can see how people in those nations live.

And on Wednesday, anti-war protestors turned to the phones for their next campaign. They bombarded Senate and White House offices with calls to voice their opposition to a potential war with Iraq.

It was a unique protest &045; albeit one that served to tie up the very phone lines our tax dollars pay for. But maybe that’s the small price we also pay for freedom of speech.

To be sure, these protests, large and small, are offensive to many people, especially those who might have sons or daughters heading overseas.

But the protests are not un-American; in fact, the very fabric of our government allows us to make such statements.

Imagine a world in which we didn’t have such freedom.

And lest we think that those who support the Bush administration’s decision to push for military force against Iraq aren’t having their say, consider this: A North Carolina restaurant has renamed a favorite dish &uot;freedom fries,&uot; in support of American troops and in protest of the French government’s opposition to war.

Whether you support the war or not, you’ve got to love American ingenuity.