We are facing al Qaeda in Iraq because that's where most of our military and presence is and therefore, according to the al Qaeda leadership, that is now where the battlefield is.

Hmm - as I understand the whole thing about terrorism in general and Islamic terrorism is particular, the goal is to disrupt "the enemy".

"The enemy" to al Qaeda is, I thought, western civilization in general and the US in particular.

Now, if one had any brains at all - and to be an international terrorist, one has to have some brains, even if deluded - then one would tend to attack where defenses are weakest... not where the might of the military is.

aQ: "Hmm, let me see - I could go to Iraq, which is far from the US, and face 125,000 experienced, heavily armed and supported, and pissed off Marines and try to fight them with AK-47s and crappy IEDs, or I could go to someplace with US interests that hardly anyone is paying attention to, and blow up a few schools or sporting events... now, which one is going to have the greatest effect in my war against Western Civilization?"

The terrorists may be crazy, but most of them aren't stupid, at least the leaders.

Logic says that, by the way they are conducting their operations, they simply don't want the US in Iraq, and don't particularly care about harming the US in general.