"You actually believe that because we are prosporous as a nation and our policies don't benefit everyone in the world, that we should accept some responsibility for being targets of terrorist attack? Sounds like you're justifying terrorist actions and implying that we should feel guilty for pissing them off and accept our punishment".

Mark ,I am glad to hear that you and your family have done well living in America. It was not my point ,at all, that terrorist actions are justified and that Western societies should accept such acts as some sort of penatent measure for being successful.
I was just trying to say that if we are maintaining our lifestyles at the expense of other people or societies and in doing so are impeding their progress or otherwise repressing them (intentionally or not) through our foreign policies or socio-economic programs, then how can we NOT at least explore the possibility that we are in some measure responsible for the conditions which help to spawn terrorism? Responsible for terrorists? Never. Contributing to a situation which causes entire sections of people to become desperate, marginalized or lose hope. Is it not at least worth considering?
How do you propose to end the cycle of violence? More soldiers? Larger prisons? Further restricting civil liberties? I don't claim to have the answers but unless we seek out and rectify the causes of hatred and desperation I don't see how we can ever be rid of acts of terrorism.

"When I see Americans like myself I see decent people who are working to survive just like anyone else who lives in any industrialized nation"
Agreed. Americans are decent people working to make a living just like anyone else in an industrialized nation. However, therein lies part of the problem. We are fortunate to live in an industrialized nation which possesses the ability to exploit resources from around the world. Do we work any harder than those decent people working to survive in non-industrialized countries? Is it fair that they are paid third world wages and are stripped of their resources while most of the economic benefit from those resources are exported back to us? Just so that we can go to Wal-Mart or Zellers and buy three of everything for $5.97. Perhaps if we paid more for our resources (both natural and human) and left a greater portion of the economic wealth in these "host" nations there would be a little less desperation, a little more hope and a lot less hate and violence.
Of course this a greatly oversimplified aspect of a larger picture and many of the issues surrounding terrorism are cultural or historical and not economical at all.
To be clear I am not trying to say that the West is necessarily the main cause of these attacks. There is plenty of ignorance and misinformation on their side as well. Not to mention a willingness to blame the West for all troubles and hardships............ real or imagined.

Wow, I promised myself I wouldn't tumble down this slippery slope and yet here I am over the edge and picking up speed :tsk:

"Scotsman" get it right "Scotswoman" please. :D

I don't mind being part of the UK

as Cathrine Tait would say "bothered I'm not bothered" :bustingup

Ok I realise you will have no idea who Cathrine Tait is :p

Jeez this thread in starting to get heavy. :rofl:

Scottish and drives an X5????? If my math is correct I do believe that makes you the ideal woman. :dance:

How does me having a high standard of living deplete the lifestyles of other people or societies? Do you think there is only a certain amount of wealth for the world, and I have more than my share? Since those of us on this board are driving luxury, gas-guzzling SUV's, it is an odd opinion.

I think his opinion was more of "look out for the little guy once you are on the top". This commentary actually gives a throwback to when we were having the "gas price" debates. One person commented "..if you can afford a BMW don't whine about fuel costs" Basically taking the road of, shut up and deal with it you can afford it. BUT the goal of our society, in theory, should be to look out for the little guy. For instance just because I have an X5 and can afford gas doesn't mean I don't think about the poor guy making minimum wage who has to fill up his Civic to get to his shitty job. Just because he doesn't earn a lot doesn't mean he doesn't wish to or doesn't work hard.

Point being, if you have a high standard of living great..good for you I'm sure you've worked hard for it, but don't forget all the work it took and that some cultures/people maybe didn't have access to the paths you had in life.

The assumption that once one achieves a certain amount of wealth they have no say on poverty is rediculous. Maybe I say that simply because I didn't come from any money at all with a father making 30,000-45,000 a year and supporting his wife and 2 kids.

A fact of life is that societies in general are guided by the wealthy or privelaged, not the common citizen. This is a fuel of most conflict through out history.

As our country was emerging, we had child labor. The foreing countries had no problem buying our textiles and whatnot. I cannot say that in our free society that I don't have a choice to buy the most inexpensive article at the quality I want. I cannot control all of the things in the world and a lot of times I just try to take care of myself and abide by the laws. Does this make me evil and deserve to be terrorized? I can't comprehend. On the otherhand I probably don't know what I'm talking about, so let me have it......

Freedom of speech kicks ass.
Although I don't agree with some things this guy said either because of my beliefs or because I don't think they could be implemented, I would totally let him drive my X5 for having the balls to say it.:)

fiona--

i thought that was the name of your X5!

sorry, lassie, hope i didn't offend you!

no, i don't know who catherine tait is, but i'll find out!

Och your alright I didnae take any offence. :thumbup:

A wee clue for you re the Cathrine Tait thing: - - - -

in keeping with this thread you want to know the best thing about the Western World and the UK has the best it's TV great programmes and british comedy. :rofl:

Parker,

It is the robust economies and wealth of the G8 countries that produce the demand for goods made in countries of so called third world status. The jobs created by this demand provide an economy in these nations that they would otherwise not have. The kind of pay an average worker receives is obviously low by our standards. However by their standards having a job at all that pays wages is saying something. Countries such as China, India, and Indonesia may very well emerge from third world status because we are buying three of everything at $5.97 as you say. Where would these countries be right now if it were not for the prosperity of the G8? Are you suggesting that they would be better off without the hundreds of thousands of manufacturing and human resource jobs we have created in these places? As far as paying more for our resources? Why would we do that? Resources whether renewable or non-renewable have a world market value that is strictly driven my supply and demand. It is my contention that most of these emerging nations would be far more destitute without the existence of wealthy countries. As far as hate and violence go that sounds like personal issues to me. As far as hope is concerned, if it were not for countries like the USA, Canada and GB with their seemingly endless hunger for consumerism these third world nations would have no economy at all. It is the spirit of capitalism and entrepreneurial pursuit that fuels the machine that creates the demand for goods that ultimately create jobs and wealth where there would otherwise be none. That is hope in my book. By attacking us and trying to hurt us economically is like biting the hand that feeds the world.

Mark