The two main reasons Osama bin Laden hated America.

QUOTE  from author Max Lucado: "Fear will always knock on your door. Just don't invite it in for dinner. And for heaven's sake, don't offer it a bed for the night."

LEARNING about bin Ladens hatred for America. Since last night I have been doing some research about Osama bin Ladin. I could write several pages about what I learned but I'll make it short and to the point.

Bin Laden was born in Saudi Arabia in 1954 or 1957. He became known as the most pious of the sons among his wealthy father's 54 kids. His path to militant Islam began as a teenager in the 1970s when he got caught up in the fundamentalist movement then sweeping Saudi Arabia. He was a voracious reader of Islamic literature and listened to weekly sermons in the holy city of Mecca.

In the 1980s he went to fight in Afghanistan against the Russians. He gained a reputation as a courageous and resourceful leader. Bin Laden and the U.S were on the same side in this fight, with the U.S. supplying money and arms. When he returned home to Saudi Arabia he was showered with praise and donations and was in demand as a speaker in mosques and homes.

REASON #1 for bin Laden's extreme hatred of the U.S. originated in 1990.  That is the year U.S troops landed on Saudi soil to drive Saddam Hussein's Iraqi troops out of Kuwait. Bin Laden tried to dissuade the Saudi government from allowing non-Muslim armies into the land where the Prophet Muhammed gave birth to Islam, but the Saudi leadership turned to the U.S. to protect its vast oil reserves. When bin Laden continued criticizing the Saudi governments close alliance with the U.S., he was stripped of his citizenship and kicked out of the country. He went to Sudan where he was also booted after a couple of years and ended up in Afghanistan again.

Being a devout Moslem he believed that Israel should be abolished. He was very much a hater of the Jews. REASON #2 for his hatred is that the U.S. has always supported Israel's right to exist as a nation. He felt we were ignoring the rights and needs of the Palestinians.

As far as I can tell these are the two main reasons bin Laden turned to terrorism. Plus the fact that he and his al-Quaida followers were not afraid of death. They envied those who fell in battle because they died as martyrs in God's cause.

HUMOR for today: So what is going to happen in the future now that bin Ladin has been killed.
I guess Yoga Berra said it best: "It's tough to make predictions - especially about the future."