The real endgame of these wars of imperialism is to control all the possible energy on the planet.All countries invaded with the exception of Pakistan have been about oil,resources,the sale of arms and drugs.

If you want some real global research see; http://www.globalresearch.ca/

This is a tired analysis content to repeat long discredited versions of history. It confuses consequences with causes. The aims of bin Laden were spelt out by him in several speeches. It was always focused on three things in particular: (1) to remove American troops from what was perceived as the sacred soil of Islam; (2) to destroy the ability of the Zionist state of Israel to continue the oppression of Palestinians and restore to the Palestinians their own land stolen from them in 1948, 1967 and 1973 and the steady encroachments since then; and (3) to destroy corrupt Arab dictatorships (invariably supported by the US) whom bin Laden saw as perversions of Islam.
Recent reputable opinion polls conducted in Arab countries reinforce the disjunction between Arab opinion and the views of their corrupt leaders. The overwhelming majority (70-80%) see the US and Israel as the greatest threats to peace in the region. Similar majorities support Iran and think that if Iran did have a nuclear capability that would be a good thing.
To nobody's surprise these poll results are not covered in the Western press in general and the US and Australia in particular.
Bin Laden became the Emmanuel Goldstein of his generation, used to justify the so-called war on terror which is nothing more nor less than the old imperialist grab for land and resources that has been around for at least 400 years. His usefulness had became doubtful so he had to be "killed". Whether it was really him or not will probably not be known for some time, not least because the Americans ensured that was the case.

Well put Arjay and James O'Neill.

The real war on terror has to start at home with an emphasis on a more egalitarian foreign policy approach and a redistribution of wealth. This can be achieved by reducing undue political and economic interference in the affairs of sovereign nations and better management of domestic affairs.

One US politician once said “If the lion and the lamb have to lay together, you want to make sure you are the lion.”

I reckon the better one is nothing to do with Lions and Lambs, this mindset perpetuates the problems. My preferred analogy is "if you lie down with dogs you wake up with fleas".

I am not certain of what to think. However, in amongst my occasional musings on this matter, one possibility within the range of things that I have to date considered is a scenario that I dare not utter.

The recent events in Pakistan, or at least one possible interpretation of them, go to add additional weight to this possibility.

That is to say, that even if we are fortunate enough to have a period of relative harmony post the alleged end of *Osama Bin Laden*

(whose body I would have returned to someone were it my decision to make, irrespective of the fact that we are led to believe that the Saudi government did not want him .. and I hearken to the legend of *Achilles and Hector*)

I hope that a reality of the world entering a far more dangerous time does not come to pass.

Wow, I just love the conspiracy theorists. Amazing, they have
nearly convinced Pelican now!

FWIW, the neo cons did play a role, their theory was that the
West was hooked on oil, that the Arabs were barbarians and that
they could not be relied on to deliver regular supplies, so
converting the ME to democracies was a good idea.

It is pointless to take over oil wells, if you can buy all that
oil by simply printing US $. So far, the US has spent a trillion
$ on wars, for no oil. Hardly makes sense, even to a conspiracist.

If bin Laden got anything right, he predicted that he could bankrupt
the USA. He was not far off the mark. He felt that Islam could go
back to its prime position, as it was centuries earlier, if the
Arabs forced the West to pay far more for oil. That is why he tried
to overthrow the House of Saud.

Those hugely embarrassed right now, are the Pakistani Govt. No doubt
they will be screaming from the rooftops, if those people left in the
house, in their custody, are in fact not the 3 bin Laden wives and
children, the twelve year old having witnessed her father being
shot and his body dragged into the helicopter.

So far they have done no such thing.

so if the 'new normal' is targeted assassinations, torture, war by remote drones etc, without regard to any ethical justifications whatsoever, then the terrorists have won, by bringing the rest of the west down to their barbaric level.

there is no 'closure' to this so-called 'war' then, it will just go on and on, only it's the civilian populations that will suffer the most, with the troops becoming the 'innocent bystanders'.

what 'a brave new world' this will be, that had such people in it.