Another case in point concerning the cultural disconnect: Why should the Taliban make deliberate targets of Western journalists? It makes no sense in light of the Vietnam experience. The only hope for the survival of the Taliban regime is to make it politically impossible for the US to prosecute the offensive. The just made it a heckuva lot easier on Bush by offing those journalists. It's gonna make it a lot harder for Geraldo to second-guess Bush strategy. Western journalists are a potential ally to be wooed, not dragged from a pickup truck and shot like some rabid dog.
We have been told that Osama understands the U.S. and a lot of the culture. He was a civil engineer, and lived in the relatively upscale Saudi Arabia. His engineering degree purportedly led him to target the WTC. IF he were alive today, he would be the first to realize the potential destruction he could cause (aided and abetted by the liberals and peaceniks in the U.S.) here by surrendering. He would also be creating nightly news for years as the trial dragged on, and acting as the greatest terrorist draft incentive since the Uncle Sam posters of WWII.
Before Bush made his "halt air campaign" speech, I was wondering when Osama would surrender himself. It took about 8 years to convict the two weasels who actually planted the first bombs in the WTC. Imagine what would happen if we had Osama.