Nataly

I have been very clear with all my boyfriends... I only have 3 rules: #1 - I make the rules. #2 - The rules apply to you, but not to me. #3 - I reserve the right to change the rules whenever I want. Sadly, I never got any of them to agree to any of my rules!! Actually, my boyfriend responded (without missing a beat): "I only have one rule: there are no rules" DAMN HIM!!! "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

See? We have something in common! You also have a great pair of boobies?? "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

But you didn't tell us which you would choose... I picked the only rational option on this poll, obviously - BOOBIES!!! Besides, how could I possibly have a valid opinion before I see the results of the poll?! "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Someone pointed out to me - and I agree!! - what an *excellent* opportunity for a poll!! "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Just a guess. I could be wrong. I'd bet that, if you happened to be a prisoner in a Taliban camp, where they'd beaten, raped, and tortured you for weeks and planned to hang you soon publicly from a sign post at the entrance of town for all (especially their women) to see, you might be overjoyed for a Spec Ops team to bust in at night and shoot each one of your captors in the forehead and get you to safety. Would you still be very upset over the attrocity of killing those who did so much harm to you? Or would you have an overwhelming sense of joy to still be alive? Again...I could be wrong. Reality just seems to change opinions sometimes. Relief and joy are two very different things. And to those who accuse me of villifying the US, all my posts are there for you to re-read - I have done no such thing. Is the US/the West perfectly innocent, though? HELL NO. To say that is just as ridiculous as saying the Middle East is entirely to blame. "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

I get the feeling this was directed at me, even though you quoted someone else. I *do* understand that humans and conflict go hand in hand. I *do* understand that "civilisation" is an artificial construct that exists so that large groups of people (who might otherwise kill each-other) can co-exist. I *do* understand that peace is (in many ways) contradictory to our nature. But am I happy that 4 people just got killed? No. Am I happy that this could encourage conflict? No. "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Um.. Based on what, exactly?? Please, find me a passage where I say or hint at any such ridiculous claim. Really. I could not be more certain that you won't be able to find one. Because it's COMPLETELY false. But do try, it should be entertaining to see you attampt to twist my words so blatantly. Why, because I am looking at more than one side of the argument?? "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

If I had to use deadly force, I would not be cheerful/celebrating after doing so... If you think one atrocious act deserves another, then I don't think you understand the true meaning of peace and how to achieve it. (I don't mean "you" specifically.) "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

You mean the ones that were harboring an "internationally recognised/known terrorist??" They were not innocent... Not by a long shot. I put that in quotes for a reason, and I did NOT say they were innocent. "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

I served many years on an Army Special Forces Operational Detachment, was in Afghanistan in 2002. I genuinely don't know what to say to that. Part of me wants to thank you for your service; part of me thinks there is SO MUCH wrong with the deployment of military troops over there. I am disgusted by many of the things that happened in the Middle East. I am sorry if my opinion on that has disgusted you. I'm always torn when friends send me "support the soldiers" links/emails. Do I support them?? I don't really know. I'm aware this is very controversial, but I find the whole war-machine rife with contradictions - many of the reasons behind war are NOT honourable, and many of the people there (good intentions or no) are not doing good. So although I wholeheartedly applaud people who go anywhere in a conflict area with the genuine desire to help, I feel despair at the thought of the many atrocities that are the result of the conflict. I simply cannot reconcile the two in my mind. I can't say with complete honesty that I am pro or against what the soldiers/administration are doing. It's a topic I find difficult to come to terms with - it's just not cut and dry for me. It's with a heavy heart that I heard the news today. I feel for those who lost people (on both sides)... I dread what the response will be, and how the US will be viewed following this event... I cringe at the thought that oppression and terrorism could grow further from this. For me, it's a sad day. "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

They have shown footage of the place that was raided on Al Jazeera (after the fact). Didn't look AT ALL luxurious to me - far from it. The video has been aired a number of times now - I'm sure if you watch it for a few minutes you will see what I mean - here is the link: Al Jazeera Live (English) And using the woman as a human shield?? Could be true, but sounds an awful lot like propaganda. The same kind of BS we accuse them of spreading about the "infidels." But it *could* be true... "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Oh my, that *does* sound yummy

Gotta say... Not in my most hectic moments did it ever occur to me to combine shaving my hoohah and driving!! Multitasking at it's (not so) finest!! Nice links!

I don't really agree with this, but one thing I will say is that when all your options are bad (or when you can't think of or imagine other options), I can see how any kind of reform would be difficult. "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

I know enough to say what I said and mean it. Added: That is a very bold statment of yours. It's not a statement - it's a question. Care to answer? Look. There are many, many, many wonderful things about America. There are many, many, many good Americans. Let's just be honest and say that to promote peace right after killing 4 people is hypocritical. You don't have to agree with me, but what I'm saying is that this act - a violent one - is NOT the solution, in my opinion. Also, in my opinion, it will take A LOT more than the removal of one person for real progress to occur. And finally, again, in my opinion, The West is part of the problem. To ignore this, I believe, is to carry on on the path of violence. Edit - format. "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

I've done my (active) military service - what the heck do *you* know about war?? "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

NOPE. Nope. Just think it's hypocritical to say you want "peaceful political discussion" directly after killing 4 people... I'm not delusional... I don't think the nut-cases will suddenly wisen up. And don't think the West will seriously reform/improve their policies/behaviour either. It's a lose-lose. I believe progress *is* possible but it would have to come from BOTH sides. So... Possible, but unlikely. "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Are you saying people helped to hide him?? Why, I am completely *shocked* by the mere idea of this. Of course he had some help. Probably by a lot of people all over the world - NOT just in Pakistan. Obviously I can't prove this, but it seems pretty likely... Does no one else find it worrying that he *did* get so much help/support?? Does no one else feel that 10 years is a long time to find an internationally recognised/known terrorist?? Agree with his death or not, I find it short-sighted and in very poor taste to shout that this is a "victory." It's easy to point the finger at "them" and forget that "our" hands are not clean... It's an historic moment, but I don't believe that people should rejoice in his death. And let's not forget the "civilian" casualties that died alongside him in this case. It's a sad day. Violence perpetuates violence. Clinton's speach about peaceful political discussion is total hypocrisy - was it peaceful to shoot/kill 4 (or 5?) people to get things rolling? Bollocks. Peace my ass. America is not a peaceful nation. Don't even get me started... "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Now that's funny. *Excellent!* "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Not making things up - stop twisting my words. I didn't say the interview of Bin Laden was by Al Jazeera - I said they interviewed a reporter (Robert Fisk, Foreign Correspondent for "The Independent" - he is talking now). My apologies, however, as he was in Iraq in 2003, and his last interview of Bin Laden was in 1997 - got the dates mixed up. So sorry about this one - I am "manning up" and admitting this error. But still it's not possible that no one knew where he was for 10 years... And that is still worrying. "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Call me naïve but I have to believe if Osama was being interviewed (and I don’t mean the tapes he released) it would have been on every news channel. Ok. Well, I've been watching Al Jazeera and they interviewed a journalist who interviewed Bin Laden 3 times (once, I believe, in 2003 - when was 9/11??)... But I guess that's not a reliable source... "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Absolutely. Him AND all the terrorists who follow him. But only as one side of the solution. "We" can't simply look at what "they" are doing wrong... The whole notion that we need to blame/villify a single person is a scary concept. There is historical precedent of this (Hitler immediately comes to mind), when in fact the "machine" of destruction was the result of a complex web of systems/structures/hierarchy/psychology. We need to really look at all the many, many, many issues surrounding war/terrorism/poverty/exploitation if we want real progress to be made. Forgive me if I don't think this constitutes "real progress". ETA - I will grant that it does have symbolic significance. But again, this could be good (closure for the victims of 9/11) and bad (martyrdom according to the followers of Al Quaeda). "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

No they haven't, stop making things up. Yes, they have. Change your news channel. Could I have done a better job?? That's totally beside the point - "intelligence" implies superior intellect... If the world's "best brains" took 10 years to accomplish this "task" I *do* find that worrying. "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

I think it's ridiculous to villify one person for the acts of many. I think de-stabilising and stopping terrorism will take much more than the removal of one leader. I think praising the killing of a person based on our beliefs but denoucing the killing of someone else based on their beliefs is ridiculous. I think they have legitimate beefs against the West even though we don't approve of their ways of dealing with it - I think this act supports their hatred of the West. I think before we can truly hope to get rid of terrorism/war, The West needs to take a long hard look at its policies and reform from within. "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss

Don't kid yourself... People from around the entire world knew. "There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss