Quote Originally Posted by bluefinger View Post
Well, with the way things are going Musharraf in his own government is that he is likely to be forced to step down. A step in the right direction, considering all the fears of an unfair election in the country. As long as Pakistan remains dedicated to tackling extremism whilst promoting a free, fair and democratic society, then it won't matter if Musharraf is made to step down or not.
Yeah, things will be fine if that is the case. However, we are worried that a fanatical Islamofascist might take his place. It is a very unstable situation.

Quote Originally Posted by bluefinger View Post
I don't think you quite understood the point I was trying to put out. We need to reach out to the people who terrorists rely for recruits, not the terrorists themselves. If give people the impression that the US is trying to make things better in the region, then the extremist rhetoric will fall on deaf ears, because people won't fell threatened by the US presence, and therefore won't allow the extremist rhetoric to spread. More often than not, extremists groom people my age or younger in these countries, people who often have little hope with their lives due to severe poverty or oppression, or feel that the US is trying to suppress and eliminate their faith (which is really just terrorist propaganda). You must get a message across to as many people as possible within these communities that what the terrorists are doing is wrong, and that the US is fighting to secure freedom in a country that desperately needs it. Reaching out to these people will cut off the terrorists from the support they rely on. This is a war of not only tackling terrorists head-on, but also a war on eliminating the extremist ideology.
That is exactly what we are doing in Iraq, Afghanistan, and our international communications. The hate Bush cult is really hurting our efforts in that area, and it is terrible for the world.

Quote Originally Posted by bluefinger View Post
Indeed, and that's why any date to ensure troops are withdrawn from Iraq has to be evaluated carefully. If the Insurgents really wanted to make sure the US went, then they would save their offensive until the US left. But that in itself could mean their support would wane in Iraq because people would adjust towards a democratic society, and thus the situation we are in unfolds. They are trying to destabilise the region so democracy can't take root, and trying to get the different communities in Iraq to fight each other, and also to distrust the army. But again, you have to fight the battle on multiple levels, not just by killing/capturing terrorists. The fight against terrorism may be global, but it's not a battle with guns, it's a battle of perceptions and ideas.
We need to do all of those things. The war on terror is being fought on many fronts and in many arenas.