But I am amazed at you. Even though we are in the fourth year after the events of September 11, Bush is still engaged in distortion, deception and hiding from you the real cause and thus the reasons are still there for a repeat of what occurred. --Osama bin Laden
I flew into London the day after the terrorist bombings took place there. These suicide bombings killed dozens of civilians. Again, these terrible events elicited discussion about the causes and motivations behind terrorism. Unfortunately, there continues to be almost no discussion at all about what bin Laden and other terrorist leaders have actually said regarding their central substantive reasons for doing what they do. It is amazing that the media (and our leaders) seem to be completely incapable of reporting and dealing with the actual claims of the terrorists. For instance, it is amazing that Americans are not aware of bin Laden’s “Letter to America.” As members of a democracy, we need to analyze and discuss critically what these people actually say (see what journalist Harley Sorensen says about needing to know our enemy). If we do this, then we will be in a better position to deliberate about what actions to take and what policies to support in response to terrorism.
To understand Al-Qaida’s reasons for doing what they do, one should read the following, or at least bin Laden’s “Letter to America”:
Bin Laden’s “Letter to America” (2002)
Abu Ghaith’s (Al-Qaida spokesperson) “Why We Fight America”
Bin Laden’s “Speech” (2004)
Bin Laden "Interview" (1998)
I'll comment on these later. But what is the central reason for terrorist attacks? What is the central complaint? America and its allies have inflicted suffering, death, injustice, and humiliation on Muslims.
