An article from BBC.

[zulfiqar raza]

Nothing can justify the terrorist acts on WTC. However do read the following so as to understand the people who have suffered like the people who died in WTC.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/middle_east/newsid_1552000/1552900.stm

[Andy Ceponis]

That article is saying that we are partly to blame for whats happened. And so that means that because of something that happened by a different government it is somewhat justified to kill innocent Americans. Well by that same reasoning then it is PERFECTLY ok to strike revenge against those who did this. And it is perfectly ok to also kill innocent people when we are getting our revenge. Im glad that came to my attention, cause now i feel better about the innocent people who will die when we stirke back.

[zulfiqar raza]

To each his own.
I dont think that article is saying that its okay to kill innocent people. What it is trying to say is that there are other innocent people like those people who died in the terrorist blasts in the WTC. As America grieves for its innocent maybe it can take a minute to also grieve for those innocents also.
As America ponders its military response to exact revenge, maybe it can also look at its foreign policy so that others don't *continue* to suffer as the innocents have suffered in WTC.
There is no justification for terrorist attacks.

[Andy Ceponis]

Originally posted by zulfiqar raza:
As America ponders its military response to exact revenge, maybe it can also look at its foreign policy so that others don't *continue* to suffer as the innocents have suffered in WTC.
There is no justification for terrorist attacks.

And maybe other countries that are in the middle east can look at their own foreign policies of state sponsored terrorism.

[zulfiqar raza]

Almost every single government in the Middle East (Except for Iran) is supported by the United States. The US even has military bases in most of the Middle East nations. Countries like Saudi Arabia and Egypt, the largest countries in the Middle East are all backed by the US with large American military presence.

[Jason Menard]

Ummm... we don't have a military base in Egypt. We do hold joint exercises with them and many other nations ocasionally (Bright Star), but I'm not sure when the last time we did that was. To my knowledge the only places we have troops deployed are Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and possibly Qatar. All at the request of their governments I might add. There are naturally countries from other nations in these areas as well.
By the way do you know that what this whole thing is basically about is that bin Laden is pissed because we are in Saudi Arabia? Because Saudi Arabia asked us to be there, because the Saudi government stripped him of his citizenship and made his family disown him, this is pretty much why he feels we must die. He is upset because we are in the "holy land" where non-muslims are supposed to be forbidden.
As for the terrorists who follow him, do you know that the core of them aren't on a crusade as much as they just like killing? After the Soviet-Afghan war, the Mujahadin, very many of whom were not even Afghanis, basically wandered around the world looking for wars to join. They fought in Israel, Bosnia, Africa, the Phillipines, anywhere they could get a chance to do what they liked to do best.
On a personal note I was shocked to learn today that up to seven of the animals who carried out the attacks on us stayed just down the road from me in the weeks prior to the events of last week. They were living like two miles from me, in motels that as a volunteer firefighter/emt I have responded to on numerous occasions. Man that is scary.

[Joe Murray]

I think that it's a misconception to think that Bin Ladin hates America for religious reasons. I've learned over the years that when someone says "It's not about the money," it's exactly about the money. He wants us out of Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Middle East so he can gain control of the oil there.
Bin Ladin is brilliantly using a religion facade to try to turn the rest of the muslim population against us. Little do they know that they would be next if Bin Ladin were to succeed.
[This message has been edited by Joe Murray (edited September 19, 2001).]

[Cindy Glass]

You know, I really don't think that it IS about the money, at least for bin Laden. I think it is about the power. Power and control. Power is has a fierce addictiveness for some people.
I think it drives him nuts to think that there might be a power out there greater than his. And he is willing to do anything to get rid of it.
Of course that may not be the motivation for every terrorist out there.

[Thomas Paul]

Originally posted by Joe Murray:
I think that it's a misconception to think that Bin Ladin hates America for religious reasons. I've learned over the years that when someone says "It's not about the money," it's exactly about the money. He wants us out of Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Middle East so he can gain control of the oil there.

We should also note that there were suspicious stock transactions on airlines and insurance companies right before the attack. I would not be surprised to find out the bin laden made a fortune by selling short.