Good post, Ebarnacle... :-) "the biggest cause of the situation is the sense of a big organization, the rich industrialized part of the world, not listening to the people who consider themselves downtrodden."

Yup. Precisely.

Also, that rich industrialized part has helped to maintain a great number of local despots in the poorer parts of the world. Saddam was one of them, a hired hit man, until he failed to "take out" Iran...mistake #1...and then went into business for himself by invading Kuwait...mistake #2. Now the kingpin, the Boss, who lives in Washington, is going to take out the hitman Saddam who failed the Syndicate and disobeyed orders. That's what it amounts to.

Osama was another "soldier" of the Organization, who was useful for killing the soldiers of the opposing mob (Soviet Russia), but he and his people became a problem after the opposing mob went bust and got bought out by the Syndicate in Washington. Now Osama is persona non grata, and will be rubbed out if the Boss can find him. The Boss hasn't found him yet.

Osama and Saddam are disgruntled former employees of the System. Osama, being a religious idealogue, has decided to make war on his former employers and die for the cause, if necessary. Saddam, being more of a pragmatist is trying to figure out how to stay alive and in power when outgunned 500 to 1. It's not an easy proposition, but no one can say he lacks determination...he's sort of like "Mad Dog Cole", if you recall your gangster movies...always preparing for one more glorious shootout.

The Boss in Washington and environs now has the entire "city" (the western world) terrified as to where Osama and Saddam may strike next, despite the fact that they are outgunned, as I said, 500 to 1. When you are outgunned 500 to 1, a direct confrontation can only be suicidal and pointless, so Osama (if not Saddam) has been reduced to hit and run attacks in unexpected locations...in other words, what is called terrorism by those who are not required to use such roundabout methods in terrorizing and destroying people...because they can just walk in anywhere with high-tech weaponry and do it openly.

The truth of the matter is, ALL the involved parties are committing terrorism and have been for A LONG TIME.

It is terrorism to maintain conditions of gross material inequality in the World, to rob people of their land and their civil rights without giving any recognition of having done so, and to maintain heavily funded despotic regimes over people as long as those regimes cooperate with Western corporations.

That is terrorism on a massive basis, and it has killed far more people than the 3,000 who perished on Sept 11th.

It is extraordinary to me that a group of people can be so blind to their own actions as to commit organized legal terrorism on millions of people for decades...and then go into absolute shock and rage when some of those people strike back with illegal terrorism on a few thousand...AND NOT GET THE CONNECTION!

Truly astounding.

I am opposed to ALL terrorism...not just to terrorism committed by the small and unofficially sanctioned players who are outside the wealthy club run by the Boss...and who, in fact, used to work for him as hired guns.

- LH