I just wish we had some assurance that blowing up some Al Quaida leader was actually going to stop terrorism. So far there simply is no evidence to point out that technique stops anything other than the single dead guy. Look at how long Israel's been in the retaliation business and they seem no further from a solution than they were decades ago. If anything, the violence has only escalated. In my mind, terrorism can be stopped only by the combination of two things - intelligence and world cooperation. The latter in many ways propagates the former. They all hinge upon one major aspect, that the country fighting the terrorists is the essence of good and beyond reproach.

Let's take this analogy to the streets. There are two muggings, one of a street hustler while engaged in unseemly pursuits and one of an innocent old lady in line for an ATM. You watch the account of the mugging of the street hustler and your immediate sense is he probably got what he deserved. Why, if he didn't consort with thieves and bums, he'd be safe right now. However, you're outraged about the poor old grandma. My gosh, we need to up recruitment of police officers, roust all the criminals, throw the perpertrator in jail for the rest of his natural born days.

It's how the world works too. Nations that mess in the affairs of other nations don't get a lot of sympathy when the bad guys strike. A guy that might be tempted to give information after seeing the terrorist act is going to be real likely to simply shrug his shoulders and say "The assholes deserved it." A nation with a huge military that doesn't hesitate to use it is going to alienate potential spy sources more likely than one that engages in humanitarian aid to their country.

What goes around comes around. Violence rarely stops violence. It simply displaces it.

Art