>>what if Bush had gone into Afghanistan before 9/11 and wiped out the Taliban and had killed Osama. What would the reaction have been from those on the left? They would have been up in arms. Wouldn't you agree?<<

I have a sick cat too Dan. He' s been sneezing and spraying cat phlegm all over the house for four days. He's presently hiding under my daughter's bed. I hope I'm not infected. You have my sympathies.

What if George Bush had gone into the Middle East and wiped out the Palestinians and killed Yasser Arafat? Or wiped out the Israelis and killed Ariel Sharon? Or what if he had gone into Texas and wiped out the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders?

Bush's "Pre-emptive Strike" doctrine is unprecedented in US history. No other administration has launched a war based on what somebody else might do. Shit, I'm reasonably certain the people of Seattle are planning to vote his ass out of office next November. Should I be stocking my bunker?

Kevin's question is hypothetical. Bush didn't do it. Who cares? It doesn't even begin to get at the question of  who installed the fuckin' Taliban in the first place and funded them against the Soviets. If you need an answer to that question send a SASE to the White House 1981-1992.