Amy,
re: The answer could be financial:
get the money, track down the money, remove the money. He loses his power and his support. He then becomes more easily capturable.
I've read articles that say that bin Laden financially is supported by many middle class and wealthy Saudi's. That they feel that the US has no right to station troops on Arab soil; that the US is punishing the Iraqi people rather than the leaders with the sanctions; that the US feels they "own" the natural resources in the middle east; and of course the support of Israel. From what I understand, most Arabs are very proud of their religion and their heritage, and very serious about protecting their independence.
I'm not sure how you reconcile the issues that cause their hate, with an eventual ground war in the middle east. Many regimes are very unpopular, the landing of US troops could cause a popular rebellion in some of the countries where we are getting verbal support. Throw into the mix nuclear weapons in India, Pakistan and China, along with an unknown chemical weapon capability in other countries, and you have the making of a disaster of unspeakable proportions.
Not offering solutions, I'm not a smart as a lot of folks on this thread. Just identifying the potential downside to all this.
I hope our leaders in Washington are very, very wise. And that the cure doesn't end up being much, much worse than the disease.
John |
