Quote Originally Posted by slapout9 View Post
What laws or constraints was UBL acting under when he attacked America? I don't see any, he simply wanted to achieve a desired effect by any means at his disposal. There were no rules or laws or constraints that I could see or understand.
slapout9,

On the contrary. ALL power systems have political restrictions to worry about. Islamists, like UBL, derive their power from the obedience of the faithful. Therefore, UBL's strategies, operations and tactics have to be (perceived to be) consistent with Islam. For instance, UBL has conducted terrorist attacks in Saoudi Arabia (the Khobar Towers bombing). This attack was possible because it was directed against foreigners. However, it would be impossible for UBL to conduct a terrorist attack in Mecca during the Hajj, even if this would result into a much higher number of victims.

I insist that there is no confusion. Warden already stressed the fact that "All military operations, including air operations, should be consonant with the prevailing political and physical environment." I hope we can agree that this statement is correct and valid for any strategist. All power systems have political restrictions to worry about and it is the strategist's job to come up with a strategy within the bounderies of these restrictions. It is NOT the politician's job to change the political and physical environment to suit the strategy.

Marc