"Hence, the lady's argument that the only way out of the problem is confronting and ultimately defeating Islamic fundamentalist fascism. Whether or not that's best accomplished through Israeli force, US force, or other less- forceful means seem to be the defining question of our time, wouldn't you think?"

The lady is silly, for the same reasons that we should have never invaded Iraq in the first place -particularly assuming the stated rationale was the legitimate . You don't win a religious war through warfare unless you're just as unrelentingly religious, which we've made of a point of saying we are not. Bloodshed -as the designers of this war surely know- only strengthens holy war combatants.

It's prolly too late for this century but if the Moslem faith were a religion of peace -as our President declares- I would suggest the following course of action. It worked at home.

“A more certain way to attack religion is by favor, by the comforts of life, by the hope of wealth; not by what reminds one of it, but by what makes one forget it; not by what makes one indignant, but by what makes men lukewarm, when other passions act on our souls, and those which religion inspires are silent. In the matter of changing religion, State favors are stronger than penalties.” - The Spirit of the Laws, Baron de Montesquieu (1748)

respects