US teen runs off to Iraq to see 'struggle between good and evil'
(AP)
Updated: 2005-12-30 15:15

"There is a struggle in Iraq between good and evil, between those striving for freedom and liberty and those striving for death and destruction," he wrote.

"Those terrorists are not human but pure evil. For their goals to be thwarted, decent individuals must answer justice's call for help. Unfortunately altruism is always in short supply. Not enough are willing to set aside the material ambitions of this transient world, put morality first, and risk their lives for the cause of humanity. So I will."

"I want to experience during my Christmas the same hardships ordinary Iraqis experience everyday, so that I may better empathize with their distress," he wrote.

He said a trip to the Middle East was a healthy vacation compared with a trip to Colorado for holiday skiing.

"You go to, like, the worst place in the world and things are terrible," he said. "When you go back home you have such a new appreciation for all the blessings you have there, and I'm just going to be, like, ecstatic for life."

His father, Redha Hassan, a doctor, said his son is an idealist, principled and moral.

His mother, however, sees things differently.

"He showed a lack of judgment," she said. "I don't think I will ever leave him in the house alone again."

Farris Hassan may not mind, at least for a while. He said he now understands how dangerous his trip was, that he was only a whisker away from death.

His plans on his return to Florida: "Kiss the ground and hug everyone."