Spain's 9 - 11

I've been to Madrid, many years ago. When I heard about the horrible terrorist attack on its train station, I remembered a city that is both old world and new world. The new Madrid had buildings that looked like modernistic oil cans which could be in Houston or Seattle. The old city had triangle shapped stone buildings with beautiful sculpture.  The buildings elevators didn't have inner doors, so you pushed a button and stood back as the floors went by.

It all changed on March 11 when 200 people were killed by the series of backpacks exploding in its trains within minutes of each other. The authorities blamed ETA, the Basque group, but they had never done anything like this. ETA killed 200 in a year, not in a day. Today they arrested some Moroccan and Indian suspects.

I think Al Qaida is now declaring war on any ally of the U.S. who supported the war in Iraq - Spain, Japan, Britain and Poland primarily.  After 9 11, the French headlines read: "We are all Americans." People in Madrid call their city 'La Villa' (the village). Perhaps our headlines should read: "We are all part of 'La Villa'."