A succession of characters take the role of "teacher" or "lecturer" in the cafeteria scene, giving long explanations of the nature of terrorism and the ways the United States should respond. Some characters, during their time as metaphorical teacher, seem to support specific real-world government policies. Lyman's and Sam Seaborn's explanations—Lyman comparing the terrorists to the Ku Klux Klan and Seaborn comparing the Taliban to the Nazis—echo the George W. Bush administration's reasoning for invading Afghanistan. C. J. Craig, by arguing for phone tapping and increased intelligence funding, is implicitly supporting the real-world Patriot Act.