The US gov't has had ample opportunities to get OBL and declined each time. They couldv'e gotten him in Sudan and elsewhere. A little negotiation with the Taliban could have probably convinced them to give him up. They've been uncharacteristically reasonable in attempting to negotiate with the US, offering to hand him over if the US produces evidence of his guilt, offering to try him in a third country, offering to have a trial under Islamic law, etc. If nothing else, a multi-billion dollar bribe (which would be much cheaper then the current war) could induce the Taliban to cooperate. If their goals were to get OBL then this war is not very effective, not will it likely be. They would be pursuing a different strategy.
-- Joe R. Golowka JoeG at ieee.org Anarchist FAQ - http://www.anarchyfaq.org
"The enormous gap between what US leaders do in the world and what Americans think their leaders are doing is one of the great propaganda accomplishments of the dominant political mythology." -- Michael Parenti, political scientist and author