Lord -

You didn't offend me, I respect you and your opinion. However I must disagree. There is a huge difference between the actions of a Government (created to serve the people) that may get out of hand, and a self-serving terrorist who uses violence to serve a personal end.

If the US gets out of control, there are procedures and ways to bring it to heel. We have rules, courts, and tradition to bind us from becoming evil. There is no such check on OBL.

As for all violence being relative, I don't buy it. If you use that rational, than defending yourself is as wrong as attacking someone. OBL attacked the US because western values (freedom, democracy, tolerance, drinking, equality of women, questioning of authority) are an anthema to his view of the righteous society. This isn't some attack on the excesses of the US Gov't, this is an attack on western values. We (the civilized world, both west and east) need to understand that, and either join with the less savory elements of Western civilization (i.e. Bush and his cronies) or resign ourselves to destruction.

Believe Lord, we can hang together, because we will assuradly hang seperately (with all props to Ben Franklin)