at the top of the thread and compare that to the stupid remarks by Trent Lott at Thurman's birthday party. Lott stupidly said that America would be better off had Thurman won the presidency in 1948. He tried to backpeddle to say he was referring to Thurman's strong defense stance, but the fact was that Thurman (a Democrat at the time) ran on a segregationist platform.

Senator Murray says that bin Laden is popular because he built roads and day care centers (an absurd notion for someone who subjugated women).

"He's been out in these countries for decades, building schools, building roads, building infrastructure, building day care facilities, building health care facilities, and the people are extremely grateful. We haven't done that.

First of all, we have been doing that for decades with foreign aid and other programs. Osama bin Laden has been pushing an extremist Islamic vision that apparently is popular with a lot of people for various reasons. Senator Murray's sugarcoating of bin Laden's past actions can be read as supportive of his actions, just as Lott's sugarcoating of Thurman's past was seen as support for his past.