Governmental authorities and the Berg family give different accounts over some details of Berg's experience in Iraq. According to U.S. officials, the Iraqi police detained Nick for 13 days, then released him. The Berg family produced an e-mail in which a U.S. consular officer in Iraq wrote that Berg was "being detained by the U.S. military." The U.S. government denies ever taking Nick into custody, and calls the e-mail incorrect, due to the consular officer's misinformation from the Coalition Provisional Authority. Beyond this, the FBI says it warned Berg of the danger in Iraq, and even offered a charter jet to fly him out of the country. Berg's father confirmed the offer, but stated that his son rejected it because Nick thought it too dangerous to travel to Baghdad International Airport.

Michael Berg admits he supports neither the war nor Bush, but called his son a Bush supporter who agreed with the president's decision to invade Iraq. Nick sought to be part of Iraq's reconstruction and the wished-for evolution into a free and democratic state.

In directing his outrage, Michael Berg might wish to compare the Arab world's widespread coverage of the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal versus the tepid response over Nick's execution. According to NBC News, "TV coverage (about Nicholas Berg's killing) was scant but sympathetic, with the two major Arab networks, Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya, carrying the story as a brief news item for half a day."

A few Arab countries, like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, quickly condemned the beheading. So did the terrorist groups Hezbollah and Hamas.

"Hezbollah condemns this grisly act which has caused great harm to Islam and to Muslims by this group which falsely claims to belong to the religion of mercy, compassion and genuine human values," said the Hezbollah statement.

But the terrorist organization qualified its condemnation: "By its suspicious actions and links, this group belongs to the Pentagon school -- the school of killings, occupation, crime, torture and immoral practices as exposed by the big scandal in the occupation prisons." Similarly, a Hamas representative qualified its outrage: "I condemn this brutal act and sympathize with the family of the slain American man, who I consider the victim of the wrong U.S. policies in the region. U.S. President George Bush and (Berg's) killers are equally responsible." Right.

Nicholas Berg died because wanton, brutal Islamist killers fear a free, prosperous and democratic Iraq in their midst. Period.