via MIke James: Just a Bump in the Beltway: Only Your Friends Will Tell You

I totally agree with this :
…if Osama bin Laden is still in a fit state to make political calculations, he must be backing an election victory for George Bush. The object of the terrorist is often to reveal the “true” repressive character of the state against which the terror is directed, and thus win further support for the terrorists’ cause. If the United States had just acted in Afghanistan, and then concentrated on hoovering-up the remains of al-Qaida, the United States might clearly be winning the war on terror today. But, as bin Laden must have hoped, the Bush administration overreacted, and thus provided, in Iraq and Guantánamo, recruiting sergeants for al-Qaida of which Osama could only dream
from Timothy Ash of the Guardian via Mike James’ Tread Lightly

Further, comments Mike makes leaves me feeling a ray of hope, and I pray he is right:

MikeJ:
Melanie’s observation based on reader input from around the world is very telling:

Melanie:The rest of the world is horrified by Bush, and horrified that someplace north of 40% of the American electorate is prepared to support him in the next election. They wonder if there is something wrong with the American character, if we are as greedy, shortsighted, narcissistic and selfish as we appear with the Bushes, Cheneys, Rummys and Ashcrofts at the helm. They always thought we were arrogant, that’s nothing new. But the world put up with that character flaw because they also know that we as people are essentially friendly, if not particularly curious about the rest of the world. That friendly face is gone now, replaced by Bush and Cheney’s opportunistic, warmaking smirk and sneer.

MIke: It’s a crisis, yes, and hence an opportunity for change. The evil spell / mass delusion that’s been gripping many of us in the U.S. these last four+ years, causing us to support these Bush guys against our interests and better judgment (and in the case of us Christians, against our bedrock theology), can’t last forever. The return of sensibility or divine intervention or both is inevitable; I pray that it’s soon. In fact, I believe — with caution, trepidation, and the occasional lapse — that it’s happening now.