Hat Tip: Michelle. 

Update: Western aid is winning hearts, according to Australian News...

THE spiritual head of Jemaah Islamiah says he is losing the battle for the hearts and minds of Aceh's tsunami survivors because of the humanitarian assistance from Australian and US military forces.

    & nbsp; Imagine that..  people might actually look fondly on the people who came and aided them after a major tsunami instead looking worshipfully at the people who tell them that god is punishing them…..  allow me to apply the Clue-by-four^{tm    ß-} Dan Ra^ther take note.

A spokesman for Abu Bakar Bashir said the Indonesian cleric, who is on trial for terrorism, regarded the relief operations by Australian and US military personnel as a dangerous development, overshadowing the role of the Indonesian Armed Forces (TNI).

  Said role seeming to be guarding UN Officials as the move from Five Star Hotel to Five Start Restaurants and back again for more meetings on what to meet on.

"We are suspicious of the presence of foreign soldiers and their show of force and the minimum publicity given to assistance from Arab states," said Fauzan Al Anshari, a spokesman for Bashir's militant Majelis Mujahidin Indonesia group.

 Probably cause there hasn’t been much to publicize about yet….

"It's dangerous, this idea by Acehnese that US and Australian forces are their guardian angels - more popular than the TNI."

    Oh yeah.. hate to have the common masses a) Consider the west as something other then the enemy  and b) start expecting soldiers to be more then thugs in uniform.. Dangerous thoughts indeed…   Darn those corrupting western values.. and the food and water our people are washing them down with…..  ::cackle::