[Red Mile Style]

Originally Posted by Agamemnon

Ok... but are the only two options 'being complacent' and 'invading all their countries'?

I see terrorism as the symptoms of a problem, not the problem itself. People don't blow themselves up for no reason, nor do they blow themselves up to re-conquer Spain. These are symptoms of a greater, real problem that they face. Whether that is the decline of Muslim dominance in the Middle East (their own region), poverty, religious indignation at US presence in their holy sites (I don't think the US dismantling a few bases in Saudi 'fixed' everything), the belief that land was stolen from them, family members were killed by Israelis/Americans/Saudis, etc., etc.

We're attacking the heck out of the symptoms, but acting as if the real problem doesn't exist. Its easier to kill them than to try and understand them... at least, I think thats what the average Westerner believes.

Nicely put.