I have very little doubt that this was a foriegn exercise. I could be wrong, but it's my gut feeling. The fact that Bin Laden was implicated in the 1993 terrorist bombing is the first thing, the decision to go for Camp David on the anniversary of the Camp David accords, the fact that we're sentencing an al Quaida member today, and other reasons, make me strongly suspect fundamentalist Middle Easterners.

Even so, I find a military recourse troublesome. It's not like Pearl Harbor, where we knew who the attackers were and where to find them. We're not dealing with a nation here, we're dealing with small groups of dedicated fanatics. So, in the end, I suspect that this will be an extremely frustrating and unrewarding retaliation. Plus, fighting against fanaticism is almost impossible. Even supposedly "evil" nations like the Soviet Union had enough foresight not to use weapons of mass destruction: they were rational and prudent. But put an ICBM in the hands of bin Laden or another fanatic, and I can almost guarantee you they would use it. This isn't a rational decision, it's an ideological one. They will do ANYTHING to bring the United States down, even if it spells World War 3. The loosely knit structure of these terrorist groups make them difficult to take down in a conventional sense. I don't think turning the Middle Eastern desert into glass will solve anything at all, but on the other hand I do not see an alternative.

• I wouldn't go that far... - harvey1 - September 12, 2001 - 19:03 UTC
  • Well, - stormcrow - September 12, 2001 - 21:07 UTC
    • I don't get it - harvey1 - September 12, 2001 - 21:28 UTC
      • You're right, of course, but... - stormcrow - September 12, 2001 - 21:46 UTC
        • s, who's with me? - bladesinger - September 12, 2001 - 22:10 UTC
          • Compare/Contrast - stormcrow - September 12, 2001 - 22:16 UTC
            • It's a shame - rggarfinkle - September 13, 2001 - 04:24 UTC
              • insurance - bladesinger - September 13, 2001 - 15:50 UTC
                • Yeah - stormcrow - September 14, 2001 - 03:11 UTC
            • you say that. - djricky - September 13, 2001 - 15:05 UTC
              • Yes, I do - stormcrow - September 13, 2001 - 17:00 UTC
                • With all due respect... - rggarfinkle - September 14, 2001 - 16:27 UTC
                • With all due respect... - rggarfinkle - September 14, 2001 - 16:29 UTC
        • We can only do the best we can - harvey1 - September 13, 2001 - 00:56 UTC
          • A political forum here would be interesting - stormcrow - September 13, 2001 - 01:46 UTC
            • Oh GOD - rggarfinkle - September 13, 2001 - 04:25 UTC