We're bombing the hell out of the place, supporting some factions and condemning others, sending in advisers, troops, lawyers, guns and money, and monitoring and interfering with their communications and finances. And we are setting up all sorts of alliances and diplomatic actions to isolate and restrict them.

We're doing so much over there that I'm not surprised if it adds to the hatred and opposition we get from those people and fuels much of their resentment towards us. Long before 9/11 we were heavily involved in the Muslim World, economically, politically and militarily, not to mention culturally: the mullahs hate our movies and they rage against our rock and roll.

If it appears we are back-pedaling our criticism of their culture I submit it is for very good reasons, we need them as allies, and insulting them isn't going to help much there, and will only provide the terrorists with propaganda fuel.

When we went to war against Sunni Al-Quaeda and the Taliban right after 9/11, the Shia Iranians and Syrians were very helpful to us.
Syrian armored units had fought alongside us in Desert Storm and both Syrians and Iranians supplied us with intelligence and did some of our dirty work (like torturing "rendered" prisoners). We were on the verge of opening strong relations with the Shia world, but complaints from the Saudis and our need to kiss their ass soon put an end to that. (Remember Bush II's "Axis of Evil" speech?) Is it any wonder those people don't trust us?

Among the strictest and most fanatical Sunni Muslims are the Iran- hating Saudis and much of our rhetoric there has been designed to keep them on our side. Playing this kind of game explains much of the "look the other way" in our rhetoric. And its the kind of game we've never really been very good at.

I think this is what you're seeing, and what upsets you so much; not a making of excuses for Islamic medievalism, but a desperate attempt to put together a "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" in a complex game where we don't know the rules.

Have you ever seen how gently we treated Joe Stalin and Soviet Communism in World War II? Perhaps the fact that he had 80% of the Wehrmacht tied down on the Eastern Front had something to do with that.

If we ever disentangle ourselves from the quicksand that is the Middle East, I do believe our public moral position against them will be much clarified. Until then, we need them and we'll just have to kiss ass and play the game.