Sure, there's a middle way. Figure out what it is they don't like. Do they really hate freedom? Do they really hate our religious choices? It seems to me that the people making the decisions, like Osama and Saddam (well, he used to make decisions) perhaps do. But I think that they wouldn't have as many people willing to die for them if the US conducted itself better. Certainly this war isn't helping; if an invading country kills a bunch of your family, are you going to be angry with the people they were trying to kill for not being hit? Chances are . . . not. You're going to be angry with the invaders, because -they- screwed up. Every bomb makes more terrorists. Whether or not there's a real way to stop terrorism, this war isn't helping.

By the way. Remember that in 2001, about 2000 people died from terrorism in the US. Well over 10 times that many people died from motor vehicle accidents in the US in the same year. In reality, a War on Highways might be more effective than a War on Terror; it's much easier to fight a tangible object, anyway.

~Sol