Such open defiance of al-Qaeda’s leadership was mystifying, coming from a man who had worked so hard to obtain Bin Laden’s approval. Bakos and other counterterrorism officers picked apart the letters and transcripts from inside their classified “vault,” wondering whether Zarqawi was making a conscious play for global leadership of the jihadist movement, or just being boneheaded.
Too many people stop and wonder "evil or stupid?" The answer is invariably both.
