A few points here...

1. Was PP favored to win the election prior to the bombings? Yes.

2. Did the bombings effectively change people's minds as to how to vote? Yes.

3. Did the Socialists benefit from this swing in votes to win? Yes.

4. Did al Qaeda want PP out because of their stance against Muslim extremists? Yes.

5. Did al Qaeda want the Socialists in because of their softer stance on getting involved in world terrorist situations? Yes.

6. Did the people of Spain do exactly what al Qaeda hoped they would do? Yes.

Since the answer to all six of these questions is yes, I can only conclude that al Qaeda effectively changed the government of Spain through terrorist bombings against Spanish citizens, and that was their intent from the beginning.

As for Spain's being involved in Iraq, or any other operations throughout the world, that's a matter for their new government to decide. The people have spoken, and whether or not we like it doesn't matter. They had a right to vote the way they did, and even though they are letting their allies down in the matter of Iraq, that's their business.

As for Spain's troops in Iraq, it was only a token force to show solidarity anyway. Were they even combat units? Probably not.

We can pick up the slack on the small amount of support they gave us in a heartbeat. Why should we be offended? But we also know who our friends are, don't we?

Wolf