>> I'm curious how many folks here are opposed to tracking down the
> perps and dealing with them in some form, whether it's blowing them
> to kingdom come, or some Fisk-like trial in an international court. <<
So far the only acts of criminality I can see took place on US soil. The network, if there is one, goes back to western and Middle East allies of the US.
Foreign policy or military intervention can't replace basic airport and inflight security, something the US was remarkably lax in. However, the international law route might save a hundred billion or so in ammunition. Meanwhile, talking up anti-missile defense technology that doesn't work very well while said security goes neglected invites accusations of criminal negligence.
That is, it happened on Bush's watch, he was in charge, he should take responsibility. Certainly better grounds for impeachment than head jobs from interns. Sure, the Democrats are lining up to be the Republican's waterboys, but it's out there and perhaps they can use it when it's time to turn this Bush out of office, too.
Just how sophisticated was this network? It was a work of genius to figure out that security was so lax and the best weapons were planes. And, if willing to commit to the end, a fueled up airliner on a coast-to-coast flight makes a great cruise missile.
Osama bin Laden might have helped brainstorm such a scheme, but so far his forte' has been military and diplomatic targets in countries other than the US.
How fundamentalist were these guys? Does hanging out at titty bars and knocking back rum and cokes til stupified sound like the bin Laden manual for being a sleeper? Sounds more like they might have been running drugs for a Colombian drug lord in S. Florida til they got bored with the US.
Finally, just what was the significance of the day chosen, 11 September 2001? Wasn't it on 11 September 1990 that Bush the Father held a joint session of Congress to get all the support he needed to bring democracy to occupied Kuwait? Guess these guys knew their history pretty well.
So was it a rather small, unconnected, pissed off group of Persian War Gulf vets and relatives from the other side (including pro-Iraqi Arabs from other countries) taking lessons out of the Tim McVeigh manual of domesticated terrorism? Even if the perps have Iraqi connections, Hussein might well have had nothing to do with it. Nor would bin Laden, though no doubt now he is saying, 'Sure, bring it on!'
Yours, Charles Jannuzi