The desire to set up a tyrannical regime with themselves in absolute power and the people of Iraq under their boots. This applies both to ex-Baathists and Islamic radicals. The end result--oppression and death--is almost exactly the same, regardless of the label.

A couple problems with this. One is that some of this stuff is being done by suicide bombers. Obviously no such person has a goal of setting himself up as a tyrant?

Another is: how does bombing the UN mission promote tyranny?

Another is: okay so what? If all ill in Iraq is done by people who love tyrany, is it not also true that they want the US out of there? How can you separate those motivations? Why would you try?

Blowing up a U.N. facility is an act which has no real effect at all on the U.S. coalition. The only thing it accomplishes is to hurt the Iraqi people. The motivation is not anti U.S. It's anti free Iraq.

problem #1: If the US has a goal of bringing in a multi-nation solution possibly with UN auspices, then bombing the UN could very well thwart that US goal. There has been a bit in the news about this possibility. Maybe you missed it when you were in France.

problem #2: Some of them like to kill Americans. Some like to bomb the Jordanian embassy. Some like bombing the UN. Some like to destroy infastructure. So you look at this mess and say: "Your problem is obvious -- you love tyrany!" I think it likely that these are not one group with one motivation, as you claim. Or that they are one group with an irrational approach to reaching their goals. Or that we don't understand what their approach is. If only I could look into the minds of terrorists with the clarity you enjoy!

If Iraq was ruled by a democratic government and the U.S. had long ago left, these pro-tyranny forces would be doing exactly the same things: bombing pipelines, blowing up buildings, and killing Iraqis, until their ideal form of totalitarian government was instituted--ruled by some Saddam wanna-be or some Taliban-type ayatollah.

Can't we just throw out your unprovable assertions and stick to the facts?

The U.S. occupation is a convenient excuse that helps recruit cannon fodder to their cause, much the same way as Israel is the excuse for the current rulers of the Palestinians to push their own totalitarian agenda.

Well it's true that a lot of folks don't like the US much, in that part of the world. And anti-US sentiment is used by all sorts of folks for all sorts of reasons (kind of like anti-communist sentiment is used in America).

Another odd part of this sentence is where you state that the American presence is a convenient excuse. That means you think these scum are glad we are there? I mean, really?

And yes, the image of these terrorists (and the U.N. bombing WAS a terrorist act) as noble "resistance fighters" is exactly the one promoted by the Left, and plays right into the hands of these thugs.

I'm sorry, what protrayal of "noble resistance fighters"?

The Palestinian rulers have been playing the Left like a fiddle for decades along these same lines.

Kind of a non sequitor, but I'll respond, anyway. The palestinians have been, and continue to be wronged. Yeah, I know: it's their own fault for not vacating the land.