[weegee]

Bill Clinton's strategy was to not respond to the increasingly disastrous attacks. It forced AQ to step up their game and do things that we couldn't blow off.

Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

I haven't seen large scale attacks from AQ since 2001 on American interests. Foreign nations have been pressured by attacks (some stood firm, some ran), but not us.

I don't think the war on Al Qaeda/Taliban/Afghanistan/Iraq... has radicalized muslims (especially in America) so much as given them an excuse to act on their radicalism.

Did the Rodney King verdict cause the blind hatred in the men that beat Reginald Denny with a brick or were they already antisocial racists looking for a fight?

[lugsoul]

Both. Though having the newly converted on their side created a total breakdown in social order, as opposed to a marauding gang who the police could quickly take down. Why did the riots break out? Because the police did not have the support of the populace in putting down the situation.

We are the police. And the rest of the world is the "populace." If they hide the perps, or help the perps, or arm and feed the perps, we don't stand a chance.