In The Iliad, combatants were not afraid to say who they are and where they came from. Partly out pride and
partly attempted intimidation. Ergo, if you defeat "Joe Blow, son of ..., grandson of ...", so much greater the
prestige gained.
I'm not surprised that the cowardly terrorists gain sympathy. Somewhere along the way, many cultures value the
miscreant. The other week, I heard an old Jean Sheppard broadcast. He was railing against a sympathetic
John Dillinger film because he lived in a town where the Dillinger gang came in, and shot 3 people in cold blood,
just because they could.
Calvin -- I cut out a paragraph on how every time warriors met in battle, they would exchange geneologies. I couldn't fit it, and the implications, in 800 words. Maybe for the next op-ed! -- Ed Hudgins