Verbal therapy

I feel the need to add my thoughts to the national dialog today, although you've probably thought or heard everything I might say here. But, sometimes blogs are just vehicles for verbal therapy, so here goes.

The memorials and remembrances are fine but they raise the old question of why some call it a tragedy rather than an attack. Accidents are tragedies, while attacks have a purpose and are usually followed by more attacks. They are by definition tragedies for the losers, which is another reason to show some anger.

For example, we should be mad as hell that Zawahiri decided to puke out a tape for today, proving their desire for mayhem lives on despite the fact it might be a signal that bin Laden is dead. He's been awfully conspicuous during two major events, the Lebanese/Israeli war and fifth anniversary of 9/11. Maybe that's why the CIA's bin Laden unit was disbanded.

But it really doesn't matter. Even if Richard Clarke had personally dressed as a Pashtun shepard and taken out UBL with a slingshot the attacks would have proceeded onward, perhaps with a slight delay. AQ had separated their leadership too well, and KSM wasn't in the spotlight yet. Facing this music was inevitable.

The pattern seems to be they attack when we're undergoing transitions of power. In 1993 they hit the WTC one month after Clinton arrived. In 1996 it was Khobar, and there were actually two attacks during the Clinton-Bush transition.

A bit simplistic perhaps, but AQ understands the pitfalls of bureaucracy better than we do. They are a patient culture and can operate in the cracks whereas we want quick declarations of victory like a sporting event. Most of America watched the Manning brothers play football Sunday night rather than the 9/11 docu-dramas, shows that could have potentially explained what we're facing to those still thinking 9/11 was a blue moon tragedy. But it was a great game. There's another one tonight..

BIN LADEN 9/11/06

This WaPo story quotes Pakistanis as claiming UBL is still kickin' in the tribal mountain areas even though nobody's seen him lately. Call me skeptical, but if he's alive he's certainly hunkering deeper than ever. Whether that's good or bad is always hard to say.