OBL on the couch. Why did he release the tape?

[gulliver]

I say it is because he saw Bush falling behind and needed to do something to try to sway the election toward Bush. I think OBL would have stayed quiet if Bush had stayed in the lead.

By attacking Bush, I think OBL (wrongly) thinks he is helping keep Bush in office.

[troublemaker]

1. It's win-win

He benefits from having Bush in office, but would appear powerful to his potential followers if he deposed Bush. (His potential followers are not the most sophisticated observers of the American scene)

So in terms of how things look to desperate and poor your muslims (and those are the only terms Bin Laden cares about) it's a no-brainer for him to release this tape. Win-Win

[NewInNewJ.]

2. I think

the Bush people have known of this tape for sometime and held it until it they thought it would help them. I also think if the American people have the brains that God gave a Goose , they will see through this and know that Bush has 4 years to find him , but wasted funds and troops on Iraq.

[Old and In the Way]

7. A ME talking head wondered if the tape was not actually done

around the anniversary of 9/11. If that's true, you have to believe that this was held back for just this occaision...when the heat was on Bush and the polls were showing the slide in his favorability numbers.

If that is the case, it will backfire bigtime on Rove.

[Sara Beverley]

3. I agree! He would much rather have this dummy to deal with.

And he knows that Bush advisors will do everything they can to inflame the Arab world through their anti-Arab policies. OBL can raise an army on that alone.

Now, do I believe that this is really OBL on this tape? I am not convinced. There is something about that fat nose that bothers me.

[tjdee]

4. He's a psycho. It's a bit sense with a bit psycho.

The scariest thing about dangerous people is the way they mix in a little truth with their otherwise wacked out perspectives.

I think he's thrilled to pieces that he, ONE MAN, has so much power over Americans and this election. He thinks he's schooling us.

It's very irritating.

[Old and In the Way]

5. If you were OBL, who'd you rather have as President?

Someone beholden to Saudi Arabia and the bin Laden family (how else to explain letting family members leaves after 9/11 and letting OBL escape from Tora Bora) or a proven leader in war who has no ties to your family?

Proof is in the pudding....OBL has no interest in meeting Mohammed yet, he's going to support Bush.

[jezebel]

6. He wants Bush reelected. It helps him drum up business. NT

nt

[NewInNewJ.]

10. As I heard someone say

tonight, the Bin Laden tape should have had at the closing, "I'm George W. Bush and I approved this Ad."

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

8. I don't think he cares that much who's president of the US.

It's certainly true that Bush has made recruiting easier for him, and that he hasn't tried all that hard to catch him lately, but Osama's agenda has to do with American support of Israel and our use of military bases in Saudi Arabia. I think the main reason for the tape, and its timing, is that Osama knew he'd get maximum coverage by sending it out now.

[sharman]

12. Am I crazy here?

I take him at his word.

OBL has specific issues he fights over, and he's telling us that Bush pushes those buttons like crazy. (Eg, a big issue was our military bases in Saudi Arabia--and now we're building bases in Iraq)

If we want to play crusades and jihad for the rest of the 21st century, go ahead and stick with the christian right nutjob zealot. I think it's a genuine warning from a guy who isn't playing games or speaking in code or playing reverse psychology.

Unfortunately, I see a likelihood of it playing to Bush's advantage--and yep, I'm scared.

[BruceWane]

15. No Sharman, I don't think you're crazy.

I think Bin Laden's statement clarifies exactly what it is that he, and his contemporaries, are trying to bring about.

He's not saying that he has any hopes of converting the entire world into an islamic theocracy. He's saying that we (america) need to mind our own business and stay out of the affairs of the other people of the world, that they have as much right to live as they wish as we do. I don't think that's an indication that he is expecting total isolationism, no relations, no trade, etc., just that we need to live and let live. His preffered islamic state can co-exist with our republic, but it has to be allowed to exist without interference from the west.

Of course, the sticking point is Israel.

While I don't in any way condone what he did, I do understand that when a group of people feels that they are being done wrong in a way that threatens their core beliefs and their very existence, they will use whatever methods are available to them in order to fight back effectively.

Until we can somehow settle the Israel situation and extricate ourselves from middle eastern affairs, there will be ample fuel for Bin Laden and his ilk, and their methods. Bottom line, we have to respect other peoples fundamental right to sovereignty, but we also somehow have to guarantee that ALL countries retain their right to sovereignty, including Israel, at the same time.

In other words, Bin Laden's wishes are essentially hypocritical in that he wants us to leave islam alone, but islam will not leave Israel alone.

[Cats Against Frist]

16. I agree very much with this statement -- up until the part

where you think it's advantage Bush.

[hlthe2b]

17. Just because he is a brutal murderer does not necessarily make him

a liar....The fact is his reasoning rings true for those who care to try to see the point of view of his most extreme of Arab factions....

[AP]

9. Bush released so that people will say, "I'm not letting Bin Laden tell...

...me who to vote for."

[alcuno]

11. He did this so that no matter who "wins," he can take credit.

People around the world will say that he influenced the election.

[npincus]

13. My theory:

here is what this tape is about:

- OBL plans to attack America

- OBL wants Bush to win, and furthermore, threatens Americans if they elect Bush (part of his strategy to elect Bush)

-OBL WILL attack America after Bush wins

-OBL wants to create disruption and division in American society and destabilize our society and government

-OBL wants to destroy the U.S. as part of his broad plan to re-establish a strict Islamic authoritarian society (Caliphate, I believe it's called)

That is his warped intent, I belive.

[PretzelWarrior]

14. I think Osama bin Laden haloween costumes sales were lagging

and he just wanted to inject a little spice into our election.

He hates Americans. He wants to take us down as people...not one president or administration over another.

[Straight Shooter]

18. because he's a fanatical religious lowlife and he wants the limelight

Optimum exposure. Maybe he was beginning to believe that Americans really do think his name is Osama bin forgotten.