Well, I believe, along with you, Kendall, that it's essential to ask ourselves why we have made these enemies in the Islamic world (not ALL Muslims, of course!) I think it has to do with our blind support of Israel, and our current lack of involvement in the Peace Process. I also think it has to do with our refusal to negotiate, such as the opportunity that presented itself at the UN Conference on Racism recently. And I also feel it has to do with our very public lifestyle that is the opposite of conservative Muslim beliefs. On my way to work, I passed a billboard promoting outdoor ads, saying they were "hot". The illustration showed two pink peppers, positioned in such a way to suggest female legs. This is just one VERY mild example of the kind of thing that Muslims would find offensive. It's not simply a matter of our troops in Saudi (male and female) providing many opportunities to offend, but our culture is totally pervasive. Movies, music, TV, websites, etc, are all shipped and sold overseas. They feel that our CULTURE is at war with theirs, and is trying to annhialate it. One last thing about troops we may have stationed in Muslim countries--prostitution INVARIABLY increases in the vicinity of troop camps. I hope this gives people some grist for the mill, re: why.

Marymac