Frank,

I agree with you. The only way we can deal with terrorism is to exterminate the people who practice it. However your example of Carthage brings up some history: After the Carthagians surrendered, the Romans slaughtered the adult male population, enslaved the women, tore the city down to it's foundations brick by brick, sterilized the soil with salt and then put a "Roman curse" on what was left.

Arab soldiers typically use their own woman and children as shields. If we chose to wipe these people out then there could be no half way measures. No Geneva convention, no mercy for prisoners, no concern about collateral damage, nothing. The obvious danger we face in destroying terrorism is that we ourselves could become terrorists.

Gary