What Are You Implying?

By now most everyone would have heard the news that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed (also referred to as KSM), the self-proclaimed architect of the attacks of September 11th, will be given a trial in New York City; the site of the attacks that he helped to orchestrate. The news that his trial would be held there has sparked an outcry from all corners of the country and one of the common themes being spread by many commentators is the fact that this trial will likely be a platform from which KSM can continue to spew his hateful rhetoric. One of the commons fears is that he will act as a catalyst to spur on more attacks on New York as the trial is underway or worse still, in the midst of these attacks, his followers will spring an operation like Otto Skorzeny in his rescue of Benito Mussolini in World War II, and rescue KSM and return him to Afghanistan to rejoin Osama bin Laden.

Now while there is reason to believe that these things are all possibilities, I believe that what these same commentators mean to imply is that they have little or no faith in the law enforcement and security mechanisms set in place in our country anymore. I find this hard to believe and insulting at the same time. Many agencies were established by the Bush Administration after the attacks of 9/11. These include agencies such as Homeland Security and the Transportation Security Administration. Both of these organizations are working to secure our nation's borders and transit systems. Additionally the intelligence gathering agencies around the nation have joined together in an era of cooperation so far unheralded in concert effort to stop attacks before they happen. While I realize that there is a new administration in power in Washington, does that also mean then that entire agencies have been replaced as well?

If you read the web you'll see that there hasn't been tremendous turnover in the government since the Obama Administration took charge. One of the key positions, Secretary of Defense, remains occupied by Robert Gates who was the SecDef for President Bush. Do these pessimistic commentators then mean to imply that Gates has suddenly changed his opinions just because Obama is his boss now? At the height of his campaign, Senator John McCain used to speak highly of the job that was done to protect our borders and our nation's security in the wake of 9/11. If that's the case then do these naysayers believe that within eleven months the status quo has changed to the point that anyone and everyone can come and go as they please?

As far as I can tell we are no better or worse than we were when the Bush Administration was in power. To say that since he established these agencies there have been no attacks under Bush's watch is like saying it will never snow in Washington again. Just because it didn't happen during his remaining days in office doesn't mean that it couldnt' have or that things may not have been planned. Thanks to the added vigilance of these agencies many attacks have likely been thwarted without the public's knowledge and our security has remained intact. So then if that's the case, what fear should we the public have against having KSM's trial in New York?

The crime that he helped plot was perpetrated in New York and that's where he should have his trial. What should be done to help keep security in check and to ensure that KSM is denied any and all opportunities to attempt to make bombastic speeches is to simply keep his trial under wraps. When the OJ Simpson trial was broadcast continuously over television, I seriously doubt that anyone bothered to watch the entire trial. Sure there may have been a handful but all people really cared to see were the highlights on the evening news. In this case even those views should be limited to the public. We don't need to see it. If we have faith in our justice system (which many critics don't seem to have since they seem convinced that KSM will be released should he stand trial) then he will be successfully prosecuted and will receive the punishment he richly deserves.

But the continued implication that our justice system is malfunctioning to the point that people are willing to believe a known criminal with ample evidence against him can walk free speaks very lowly of what people think about our justice system. It also speaks lowly of what they think of our national defense and intelligence community. Perhaps the fact that Major Hassan of Fort Hood showed ample signs of being a potential risk though the signs weren't caught in time is what is driving this pessimistic view. All I can say is that I have faith in our nation's security services (both military and civil) and by having KSM's trial in New York, near the scene of the worst crime in history, will prove that our nation can give a criminal a fair trial and yet keep the city that is holding the trial safe.