all-encompassingly

drudge has the images. as far as reaction, barbara stock nails it:

The hideous butcher of an American citizen by faceless terrorists and the video put out by creatures I used to refer to as ”animals” has changed all that. As they held up this young man’s severed head for the camera, I decided I will no longer call these sub-animals anything but ”things.” Calling them animals and putting them in the same class with pigs, is an insult to pigs so I hereby issue a formal apology to all the pigs of the world. The swine of the world are far more ”human” than these ”things” that can cut an innocent man’s head off in a most gruesome fashion. They can’t even kill a helpless man–with his hands tied behind his back–with four ”things” holding him down–in an efficient manner.

No, they hacked at his throat as he screamed in agony for 30 seconds before his misery was finally ended. What brave ”things” these butchers are to kidnap a man who was there helping to rebuild Iraq. He was not a soldier. Nick Berg didn’t shoot anyone. He didn’t humiliate anyone and take pictures of the event. No, he just went there to work. As they ended this young man’s life, they were shouting, ”God is great!” May Allah design a special place in hell for these ”things.”
- - - - -
If the Muslims of the world do not step forward and demand that the killing ends, the bloodbath will go on and on. As Muslims allow their sons and daughters to be indoctrinated into a climate of hate, where the throat-slitting of innocents and the killing of babies is cheered as a great victory for Allah, the hate will grow, but not as Muslims expect. The hate will come from our side.

Americans will no longer care if we blow up a mosque. If the ”things” are hiding there, blow it up. If terrorists hide in Islam’s holy shrines, they are no longer holy but black holes that lead straight to hell.
- - - - -
As to Americans, we have been reminded of what the enemy really is–a ”thing.” Terrorists are faceless, soulless creatures that must be exterminated from the face of earth. ”Things” and all who harbor them must cease to exist. If terrorism is not stopped, it will corrupt all and evil will win. [source]

bruce herschensohn expresses similar sentiments about this war: LA times-subscription required

Our victory in World War II was not achieved by trying to win the hearts and minds of Germans and Japanese. We did not dominate the newsreels with pictures of those things a few American troops did to captured enemies. We did not call for an end to domestic profiling. We did not demonstrate against our military involvement. There was not the outrageous political complaint that “I support the troops but oppose the war.”

Instead of all that, we bombed our enemies to submission with all the power and weaponry we had available. After our costly invasion of Europe, with immense U.S. casualties, the atomic bomb was ready — and to prevent another invasion we used it on Japan. Today, we justifiably call those Americans of the 1940s “the Greatest Generation.” During those years of war there was one issue: winning the war by demanding absolute and unconditional surrender of our enemies. Other issues were put aside as luxuries that would be reserved for a later time; there was not a simultaneous cry for saving the environment and a demand for creating more jobs and an insistence on government-provided healthcare and lower costs for prescription drugs.

But in the 1960s came the Vietnam War, along with its battles televised to American living rooms. Since that war, too many Americans have insisted only on fast wars with few casualties. They all had to be something like the invasion of Grenada or the liberation of Kuwait.
- - - - -
The only subject worthy of our national attention and the only pursuit that should be acceptable is total victory — no matter if others are offended or even destroyed. I know this kind of thinking is not considered acceptable in 2004. But we better accept it — and quickly.

in my opinion, terrorists have hidden behind the excuse that they are not the official actors for a government or religion for too long. here’s a message to arab nations and islamic clerics: if they REALLY ARE fringe groups that, in no way, express the official desires of islam and arab nations, for your sake, denounce them! capture them! and prosecute them! (like we are doing to our prison guards at abu-ghraib). if not, the day is not far off that americans, as a whole, say to the muslim world, “if you don’t do anything about your terrorists, we will, and don’t expect any sympathy from us if you go down with them.”

- - - - -

UPDATE: bob lonsberry covers this topic today, and addresses the plethora of issues more eloquently and succinctly. [here]