Remember?

I understand that the “Blind Sheik” is near death – by now he may be dead, for all I know.

Anyway, it seems that American intelligence and law enforcement agencies are concerned that Islamic fascist terrorists may try to stage attacks on, and in, the United States if and when he actually dies.

So how does that make things any different than any other day?

Have the five years since the last attack on American soil just been a case of their taking some time off to give us a break?

I know readers of this space have heard me say it time and again, and I recognize that I shouldn’t be too haughty when I point this out – in fact, I fully expect another successful terrorist strike against us at some time in the future – but this whole episode regarding the blind terrorist only serves to remind me of how successful the Bush Administration has been in preventing another attack to take place following the horror of September 11, 2001. For those keeping score at home, that’s five years, three months, and four days since Islamist barbarians have scored a “hit” on American soil.

For all the missteps that may have been made in administering the war and its aftermath in Iraq, fairness demands that everyone acknowledge that the lack of another such attack here at home is no accident or coincidence (of course, I am fully aware that not everyone is fair). And it provides further evidence – though, granted, not conclusive evidence – that engaging the enemy on his “home turf” has been a vital part of keeping him from planning and carrying out operations here. For all the troubles that the bad guys are causing, they are unquestionably on the defensive over there, rather than on the offensive over here.

Of course, I am one who believes that, ironically, the success of President Bush and his administration in returning life to “normalcy” here at home has been a major source of voter dissatisfaction with him. There has never been a serious attempt to fully ingrain in the minds of Americans that we are in a war for survival, other than the President’s occasional reminder that “we are at war.”

This has allowed many non-observant types to come to the conclusion that there is no real war going on and no impending external threat to the nation. After all, life as many see it goes on as it always has. And if there is no war going on, why are there nearly 3,000 new military graves here in the United States? (By the way, can any of you tell me how many of the sub-human terrorists have been killed by our forces? Me neither – the government stopped talking about these numbers publicly a while back – but I know it’s a lot more than 3,000).

George Orwell once said that people sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf. In a world where evil, and evil men, exists, safety and security don’t just happen. And just because we haven’t had to deal with the horrors, and inconveniences, that people in other nations do on a regular basis for over five years doesn’t mean that it’s for a lack of desire on the part of evil doers.

Our military personnel, and their Commander In Chief, recognize that eternal vigilance is the price of freedom. It concerns me that eternal vigilance is no longer a high priority for many of the people from whence their power derives.