Reply #48: I honestly don't know what you folks want.

[Flatulo]

There are violent Jihadists out there who want to kill Westerners. I know there are some, perhaps many, here who do not believe this. Don't listen to the Administration on this - listen to what these loonies themeselves say. I encourage you to do your own research rather than simply closing your minds and wagging your conspiracy fingers.

If by due diligence some of you are able to ascertain that there is a threat, next ask yourself what the response should be.

Many here have criticized the Administration for not capturing or killing bin Laden. Fine, so at least that implies that he is someone who needs to be killed. We're making progress. Besides, Clinton attacked Afghan training camps, and I don't think many here blasted that action, so we have precedence for the justification.

Yet when the military reports that they *have* killed a senior terror leader, I see nothing but mockery and chants of 'gee, we killed the #2 guy five times now'. Can you really be so ignorant? Just like in other organizations, when a leader gets offed, someone steps in to replace him. Savvy?

I know, and I'm sure that most of you feel the same way, that invading Iraq was a really, really stupid idea. But many here (hopefully) still feel that military action in Afghanistan was necessary to clear out a swamp of avowed Jihadists who are determined to strike Western interests.

Many brave Americans and other Nato troops are risking their lives every day to kill or capture those who want a very strict and fundamentalist strain of Islam to rule the world and are willing to use violence to achieve their goals. Does it really give you vicarious pleasure to mock the efforts of those who are actually fighting this battle?

I know your mockery is directed at the Administration, but you can't have it both ways. When Bush did nothing to prevent 9/11, you assailed him as being incompetent at best, or complicit at worst.

Now that there is a concerted effort to deal with the problem, you mock any progress whatsoever.

So I ask you, how would you do better?