They go in with a thing called tolerance, Ed.

Hell, they OD on the shit, expecting everyone on the face of the globe to accept the all mighty Golden Rule. Killing is wrong -- hell, it's the business of the world's militaries. This being the case, military institutions may be considered business necessities by non-government orgs, but may also be openly shunned, particularly in public.

Terrorists just love this.

What the NGO’s miss is that the U.S. Militaries are there for all. Seriously. Their buildings are full of tolerant people -- like you and I, like Lindy and Sam, like Nick and Jacob (who just happen to be trained to defend themselves and their comrades to the death) -- and, with proper, admittedly bureaucratic, paperwork, their doors are open to all comers. All that's needed is an honest request for interdepartmental/international aid.

The UN's idea of security is keeping Ba'athist Regime guards on the payroll, even after the fall of Hussein, then moving into his capital city. Might as well employ the enemy as security up front.

The ICRC's idea of security is a few 50 gal drums filled with cement. Additional shrapnel for the high explosives car bombers use, I say.

The U.S. Militaries work at screening their local security forces, fully expecting and watchful for the bad eggs who will invariably slip through. And around their doors, you'll find tonnage -- some 10, 20, even 30 tons each -- in concrete reinforcing blocks to either prevent, or impede access.

Not perfect, sure, and we may make a few mistakes, some of the big, but at least we have some glimmer of what the hell we're doing out there, with a real appreciation of the most obvious dangers.

Dan