HOW SOON WE FORGET

Osama bin Laden did us no favors September 11th, but he's proven that even the darkest of dark clouds can contain a silver lining. After those dastardly, cowardly, terror attacks, we have--if all too briefly--rallied again. We became Americans again. Not disgruntled Americans, hyphenated Americans, litigating Americans, or complacent Americans, but just Americans. This country is remarkable in so many ways, but near the top of my list would be our ability to take the hard shot and get up--to make up for lost ground and go on to the inevitable triumph. We've made something of a habit of what golf fans used to call an Arnold Palmer finish: make a few mistakes early, fall behind, then come charging down the fairways on Sunday poised to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. We never entered a war truly prepared 'til the Gulf War of 1991, and that was against an enemy with no capability to strike directly at us. One who had to wait while we took months to assemble and transport our knockout punch. When the armies of Hitler, Tojo, and Mussolini were ravaging the civilized world, the U.S. Congress managed to get around to passing the continuance of the draft by one vote, mere months before the savage and devastating attack on Pearl Harbor. Always, we've sat smugly behind two oceans, and, armed with the idiocy of isolationism, told ourselves that our ultimate triumph was inevitable. But it wasn't. Not then, and most assuredly not today. Those oceans are just a few minutes delay in the arrival of a ballistics missile. And in countless ways, at countless targets, an open society such as ours lies vulnerable to even the weakest foe. We are a target-rich environment. We'd be well advised to scuttle that come-from-behind strategy--or excuse--once and for all before it really burns us. I'm convinced that these attacks have proven our nobility. When we first came to world preeminence more than half a century ago, other countries would have carved an empire. We gave the world the Marshal Plan. No other country in history has ever agonized so much over ways to avoid civilian casualties, or ways to feed the starving in Afghanistan, or the proper treatment of the uncivilized savages at Guantanamo Bay, who laugh at our concepts of human dignity and legalistic nitpicking known as the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. The United States is far from perfect, but from the comparisons of the real world, we're a darned sight closer to perfect than any dominant power in history. Yet, within that nobility there have been examples of some of the most bigoted xenophobia toward anyone who could be vaguely stereotyped as a terrorist. We need to rein that in--and forcefully--or we just might wind up giving Osama bin Laden exactly what he wants: a holy war. We remain bewildered by the abject hatred of our enemies. Part of it is just plain envy. We're successful. Our system works. That's sufficient for small minds. We've been the world's top dog for just over half a century. The British, who held that rank for 350 years, learned that there are those who always hate the dominant power, merely because they are dominant. The British learned what we must learn: those at the top can never depend on the world's affection, but we can demand its respect. Militarily, we've prevailed again in lopsided victories. But if I were Osama bin Laden, still alive out there somewhere--my forces dead, imprisoned or scattered--I'd still take heart in the lessons some of our past enemies learned: take your shots from the Americans, but never give up. In the end the U.S. will tire of the effort, or get bored, and seek a dozen excuses to stop...and then you can prevail. That's our biggest foe right now: the gross national attention span. We're Americans, and we think instant gratification is our birthright. We're the only society in history which stands in front of the microwave oven yelling "Hurry!! I haven't got all minute!!" If we can overcome some of those things, we may yet prove as invincible as we think we are.Jim Bohannon Our response involves far more than instant retaliation and isolated strikes. Americans should not expect one battle, but a lengthy campaign, unlike any other we have ever seen. It may include dramatic strikes, visible on TV, and covert operations, secret even in success. We will starve terrorists of funding, turn them one against another, drive them from place to place, until there is no refuge or no rest. And we will pursue nations that provide aid or safe haven to terrorism. Every nation, in every region, now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists. (Applause.) From this day forward, any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism will be regarded by the United States as a hostile regime. After all that has just passed -- all the lives taken, and all the possibilities and hopes that died with them -- it is natural to wonder if America's future is one of fear. Some speak of an age of terror. I know there are struggles ahead, and dangers to face. But this country will define our times, not be defined by them. As long as the United States of America is determined and strong, this will not be an age of terror; this will be an age of liberty, here and across the world. George W. Bush, September 20, 2001(to read the entire speech before the joint session of Congress go to www.whitehouse.gov news releases September 2001) This speech received standing applause from both the Democrats and Republicans - such a shame it takes a tragedy to bring the country together - how soon we forget!