Now some questions:

If you reasonably suspected the driver or the politician she was visiting were responsible in some way (apologies if I am libelling them, I am talking about speculations), how DO you investigate with a "ticking hostage heart" scenario? Would your measures -- even detention, high pressure (without waterboarding) interrogation of possibly innocent persons, threatening his future or associates -- really be that much different than what less savory governments and factions would do?

Forgive my counter-stereotyping, but I wonder if, in a Washington Post story I cannot link to now, the reported fact that Jill Carroll had recently become so intent on perfecting her Arabic played a minor contributing role? Americans in the region are, of course, presumptively spies to far too many MENA-ites, including too many who should know better, but learning Arabic practically makes it a conclusive certainty to the popular prejudices. If that fact got out to associates of her employees, and it could easily enough, the motive to sell her out or target her would have gone up. Naturally, there are many more other more powerful and obvious reasons for her to be a target (including the generic targetting of Americans and her open travel) but I never believe in underplaying stupid thoughts as a contributing propelling factor in human affairs, especially in areas of conflict. (If there were no Michael Totten, for example, humanity would have to invent him.) It also allows us to play off language-learning value discussions here on Aqoul and its affiliate Lounsbury site.

When activist and aider of Iraqi war victims Marla Ruczicka was killed by an Iraqi suicide bomber, her risk-taking and motives were noted below by a reporter who knew her.

"The only thing we can say now is at least she [was] doing what she wanted, doing what she really, really believed in. . . . She'd be most worried now about her driver's family and who will take care of all the other Iraqi families she was working with. She would point out, this happens to Iraqis every day and no one notices or even cares. There are no newspaper articles or investigations into what happens to them. For most of them, there was only Marla."

Those tributary words are those of reporter... Jill Carroll. Let's hope they do not become too ironic.