Before I continue, two points: 1)I wasn't trying to make light of the terrorism that occurs worldwide, it is all terrible and all of it must be brought to an end. 2)I feel that this is an exchange of ideas, I don't want to come off as hostile or argumentive - if I do I appologize in advance.
Now, to answer stephen,
Conflicted,
if you get bin laden, before the ink is dry on his confession , a hundred more Junior BinLadens will be vying for his spot.
I wholeheartedly agree, that's why I said
If Bin Laden were to give himself and his followers up so that we are guaranteed that his reign is over
I may have not been clear, but what I meant was satisfaction comes with the fact that nobody can step into his shoes and continue his work. The man behind the mission matters, but stopping Bin Laden isn't the last thing we need to do, it's the first on a long list.
Mark, I agree that this isn't a war on terrorism, if it were it would have started long ago. I don't know that it is a war on Afghanistan either. That is where it's taking place, but the war is against muslim fundamentalists. Like it or not, the US is entering into a Holy WAR - a religious WAR. This isn't about territories or who should rule what land, that is a war against a country. This is a battle to defend the rights of non-muslims to exist on this planet, because Bin Laden thinks we don't have that right and he is moving to eradicate "western devils" from earth.
Make no mistake, this is a religious war. Aginst people whose religious beliefs say we should be destroyed. I have heard and read all of the info on how Islam is a religion of peace and muslims by and large are aghast at what has occured. That doesn't change the fact that Bin Laden is a muslim and he is acting on his beliefs. So he doesn't represent the majority of Islam, he is acting on behalf of his faith.