  Mecandes at urlLink Mere Catholics feels that if we can just answer this question then we'll all be safe.
When the U.S. can truthfully answer the question, "Why does the rest of the world hate us? " -- and come up with a concrete plan of action to change that -- then, and only then, will they really be able to say, "We're safer from terrorists today than we were yesterday. " This seemed to me to be a rather simplistic way to view the problem and certainly not justified in terms of the terrorism problem. I have yet to see a time when U.S. policy has pleased all countries. Certainly, we are highly unlikely to please Muslim countries ... unless, perhaps we had a mass conversion to Islam and changed everything about our culture. I don't know about Mecandes, but I like being an American, however little I may approve of certain aspects of our popular culture.
In our politically correct times it is easy to forget that pleasing (or appeasing) other countries is not our purpose. Our purpose as a nation is to protect our own national interests. Hopefully we can do this while others see the logic behind our actions and without giving offense. But if not, well, c'est la vie. Jayman at urlLink Illuminated Obscurity has a much more thorough and well thought out response in which he answers Mecandes (and Steve, a commenter) point by point.
Here's one of my favorites. “Against the will of the United Nations” – I, as an American, don’t really give a damn if the U.N. doesn’t want my country to take measures to ensure the safety of not only our own people, but also the people of the Middle East. I have no confidence in an organization that, among several other problems, appoints despot leaders to enforce laws that concern crimes against humanity... 
