refusing to negotiate

The kidnapping of Fox journalists has me incensed. Dangling someone else's life as though it were a bargaining chip seems to be the violent act of choice in the Gaza strip as well as Iraq.

I don't envy those who work in the State Department. The official policy "We don't negotiate with terrorists" makes sense to me. Negotiate once and you set a precedent, effectively encouraging further kidnappings. That said, it's a tough decision to live with. One of the worst effects of kidnappings is that the kidnapper makes the victim's family feel culpable if they don't comply with demands and the victim is harmed.

All this happens as Jill Carroll's story unfolds piece by piece. How exactly did she manage to survive? Can anyone honestly claim that there was no negotiation?

It's an interesting moral dilemma and a very sad pattern.