Terrorism works.

Need proof? Last week, terrorists believed to be linked to al Qaeda set off a series of bombings in Madrid. The carnage came just days before Spain's elections. What polls indicated would be a comfortable victory for conservatives transformed into a socialist upset. The bombings, Spaniards widely believed, were payback for the conservative government's support for the war in Iraq. Shortly after the elections, new prime minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero announced his intention to withdraw Spanish troops from Iraq.

After last week's bloodbath at the hands of Islamic terrorists, and the ensuing show of national pride, I figured the Spanish people would be ready to vote for Richard the Lionheart had his name appeared on the ballot. I was mistaken.

Without bribes, campaign contributions, or even running their own candidate, a small but determined group of fanatics was able to oust an entire government and shift a nation's policy to something more amenable to their objectives. While it is not unwise to discard a policy that a nation deems harmful, there is something terribly unsettling about accommodating the wishes of terrorists.

Throw a dog a bone and he doesn't leave satisfied. He comes back for more.