What makes Osama bin Laden tick and what's he after?

Many people have tried to answer these questions, but we're going to give you our take on it and boil it down to a nutshell.

What does bin Laden want?

He's not like Hitler nor Saddam Hussein because they had political objectives, loved material wealth, fear their own death, and had a line they wouldn't cross.

But not bin Laden. Material possessions mean nothing, death is not to be feared, he lives in mountain caves like a pauper, and doesn't have political ties nor objectives.

Instead, bin Laden is fighting a modern-day 15th century religious crusade. That's right, he's using 21st century tactics to accomplish a 15th century goal:

Impose HIS brand of Islam on the entire world population whether they like it or not! And accept him as its leader.

During the Crusades and Spanish Inquisition, people were tortured in order to get them to convert and the methods used were cruel and crude. Today, bin Laden is employing 21st century techniques like bombings, hijackings, and fear to accomplish the same objective: follow his brand of Islam or face the consequences!

Thus, he has positioned himself as a spiritual leader. He's an "evil-genius" but a master of organization, finances, and instilling fear. Quite frankly, should he devote his efforts to good, he'd be like a Patton. But unfortunately, he's PURE EVIL!

So how do you fight a man like this?

Unfortunately, it's extremely tough. Killing him would be the worst thing possible because it would turn him into a martyr--he'd die fighting to preserve the cause of Islam!

Letting him live or putting him on trial wouldn't accomplish much because they'll always be someone else to take his place--and in fact, would be cause for his supporters to rally in efforts to free him. His supporters are fighting for their religion and are extremely brainwashed and devoted to the cause.

The notion that we can stamp-out terrorism is pure nonsense! It's like the drug war, we can make dents, but never wipe it out completely. It's too widespread and difficult to eliminate.

Military action won't accomplish anything because he has operatives throughout the world and inside coalition member countries. Besides, the Taliban has relatively no defenses anyway.

And quite frankly, the US is partly responsible for the Taliban's rise to power in the 1st place. We armed the Mujahadeen in their war against the Soviet Union, and then when it was over, abandoned them and basically took the attitude: you've got your country back and now you're on your own to rebuild.

With a poor and devastated country, and no real leadership, it lead to civil war among the various warlords. That's when the Taliban came in relatively peacefully and brought relative calm to the region.

WE DON'T SUPPORT the Taliban, NOR CONDONE their actions and brand of Islam, but do understand that things were more unstable beforehand and that the US CANNOT afford to repeat past mistakes.

Why do some people follow bin Laden?

That's a question which seems to puzzle many, but we don't think it's so hard to fathom. His "parish" are the poor Muslims who have little else and little hopes. He comes in and provides staunch faith and a cause, and literally puts people to work fighting to achieve a religious goal. A technique used throughout history, and one which results in a hardened and loyal following.

Now this is what makes it so incipid: while literally brainwashing the poorest of the poor in the Islamic World to accept his vision, all the while he's developing strong loyality and justifying killing by any means necessary.

That's why bin Laden is so powerful: because he is a master at brainwashing, strategy, finances, PR, and fear. How do you fight a man like this?

So what's our solution to the war on terrorism

Don't fight terrorism on the terrorists' home turf, like Afghanistan, but rather let each country around the globe focus on beefing-up its own security with a sharing of intelligence info and security methods.

It won't end terrorism nor prevent every attack, but it will send a clear message that the civilized world won't tolerate terrorism anymore!, and that we'll be on our guard and ready for the next time! It will make it harder for attacks to occur.

Bottom-line: the entire civilized world will have to get used to living more like an Israeli--terrorism is a fact of life, but life goes on. Protect yourself, but don't live in fear. If it happens, it happens. And when it does, we'll act and not take it laying down! And if it means fighting on their terms, then that's what we'll do. Throw the rule book out the window!

Won't be easy, nor the ideal living conditions, but the world is a very very different place, and we have to forgo some liberties in order to survive. Terrorism is a fact of life, but won't destroy it. People around the globe need to go on with their normal lives and if it happens, it happens.

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