The instinct for disagreement runs strong in this one
You actually grasp my point, but you seemed to need to couch it in disagreement anyway:
The poverty allows the leaders to generate the miserable cannon fodder and suicide bombers the wealthy leaders need. The desperate Palestinians wrap themselves in explosives.
One tactic of traditional warfare can be adapted to this new type of war: Deprive your enemy of resources. Terrorism's most important raw material is cannon fodder. Starve 'em.
You seemed also to feel a strong pull to the knee-jerk cry of "appeasement!". Well, Tom, understanding the nature of a problem isn't appeasement. It's simply smart. And if you and Bush are actually sincere about considering war the last resort, why are you so afraid of the possibility that there might be a solution that doesn't involve all that juicy killing and bombing? Doesn't the possibility of a "cost-effective" solution appeal to your Republican heart?
There is not the slightest sign that Bush and his gang ever considered any approach but war. If there's a better way Bush won't find it because he refuses to look. That alone makes "Anybody But Bush" a promising alternative.