Silly Little Frenchman...They Hate You Anyway

If the French ever thought that not joining the war on terror (food for oil, anyone?) would somehow set them apart from other American allies, and make-happy the hate mongers of radical Islam, they can know for certain now that it didn't:

Al-Qaida has for the first time announced a union with an Algerian insurgent group that has designated France as an enemy, saying they will act together against French and American interests.

Now, I'm not French, but I had to wonder, why oh why would Al Qaida want to attack the peace-loving, pacifist French? I mean, other than the fact that Al Qaida wants to terrorize anyone who doesn't adhere to their rule (Hey Folkblum, that's fascism), the French should be the least of their worries, right?

Well, I got my answer from Anne Giudicelli, a former French diplomat specializing in the Middle East who runs the Paris-based consultancy Terrorisc. Here's what she had to say:

"The Americans have become harder to target domestically, so they are trying to widen the field of action and strike their allies," she said.

I hope you read that last sentence twice. That's an amazingly powerful statement. If Al Qaida can't hit us at home, they are going to hit our allies. Now, that's always been a given, but what's different now is that Al Qaida is directing their attention specifically away from the United States and to other countries. Admittedly, this doesn't bode well for France, but it sure speaks volumes to the steps the Bush administration has taken to protect this house.