"Nobody can justify this"

A blindfolded Margaret Hassan, the Irish-born head of charity operations of Care International in Iraq who was kidnapped in Baghdad October 19, has been shot dead in the head by her hooded captors.  Not wishing to offend the delicate sensibilities of its viewers, Al Jazeera is refusing to show the video. Isn't that sweet? Her image should forever haunt all who would excuse terror for "root" or any other causes. She was a mere prop in an adolescent control fantasy.

"Nobody can justify this. Margaret was against sanctions and the war. To commit such a crime against anyone is unforgivable," said the siblings of Islamicist terrorism's latest victim, aid worker Margaret Hassan, who is shown -- blindfolded -- being shot in the head by hooded thugs in a video sent to Al Jazeera.  While the grieving relatives condemn such a crime against anyone, the mention of their beloved sister's anti-war stance as some kind of protection against terrorism is eerily reminiscent of Michael Moore's obscene e-mail immediately following 9/11 -- blogged here -- where he said "Boston, New York, DC, and the planes’ destination of California -- these were places that voted AGAINST Bush! Why kill them?" Reminiscent, too, of the Spanish citizens' assumption they would be spared future terrorist attacks if only they would vote out pro-Iraqi-Freedom Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar.

Wishful thinking and the projection of one's own motives onto others can be evolutionarily advantageous by predicting an adversary's thinking.  But the left's reflexive denial of the dark side of human nature has rendered them unable to imagine the true nature of the enemy, as the Dutch have learned to their sorrow with the cold-blooded murder of filmmaker Theo Van Gogh, blogged here.

"These are not freedom fighters or Minutemen, as Michael Moore notoriously proclaimed them earlier; these aren't even animals, as animals kill to eat or defend themselves ['Guess he isn't a cat person -- ed]," writes Captain Ed of Captain's Quarters re Margaret Hassan's murderers:

I can only describe them as ghouls, living demons who live to smell the blood of others in what appears to be some pseudosexual release. They live without a shred of honor or dignity, and like any other psychopath, only derive pleasure from the torture of others.

We agree they're ghouls, but they are not without a kind of perverted honor of the sort discussed by Dr. Peter F. Rowbotham in his 1992 essay "The Importance of Being Noticed," where he talks about the unorthodox bonding rituals of Hell's Angels and British Soccer fans as examples of a "system of honor that is an alternative to mainstream moral orders“ In some groups of young Muslims," say Dutch intelligence sources, "the wish to take part in jihad appears to be part of youth culture . . . It definitely can't be ruled out that some of these youths just want to make an impression on their peers with radical behavior and statements."

Oh, yes, and the MSM -- not to mention Al-Jazeera, who is cheerfully airing the tape -- is all in a tizzy about a US Marine's having shot a wounded terrorist who may or may not have been concealing a weapon in a mosque. As Blackfive explains to the armchair second guessers:

That Marine who shot the wounded terrorist had been in combat for eight days.  He's tired, hungry, frustrated, angry, and, had been wounded the day before.

That Marine who shot the wounded terrorist had lost his best friend to a booby-trapped (wounded or dead -- it's not clear, yet) terrorist.

That Marine who shot the wounded terrorist decided to shoot that one and not the others (who didn't make any moves).

The Marines had cared for the wounded terrorists the day before when they took that Mosque the first time.  The next day, those terrorists opened fire on Marines from the same Mosque.

As for the accused Marine's buddies, they "have repeatedly described the rebels they fought against in Fallujah as ruthless fighters who didn't play by the rules. They say the investigation is politically motivated."  That sounds about right.