Some Final Thoughts On History Being Made

So, here's the last word for the moment from me on the 9/11 commission and their eighth public hearings that were held this week.

It's pretty clear from the statements that have been made public that very little could have been done to prevent the attacks, mostly because the administration as a whole didn't expect anything like it. Yes, there were lots of warnings and such that something might happen, but no one really believed an attack like 9/11 could happen in the United States.

That's not to say that the attacks could not have been prevented. It's become equally clear that they could have been... but the same forces that kept the administration from believing that the attacks could happen kept them from acting on the information they had. In other words, it looks like it was a deep institutional problem within the government. The murderers of 9/11 were not all-powerful supermen, but instead benefitted from an institutional lethargy of our government.

Now, I haven't got access to all the secret files and tons of information that the panel has, but from reading the documents at the commission website, that's the armchair quarterback conclusion I've come to. The panel is there to get to the bottom of those problems in the government, and make sure they don't leave us vulnerable again.

Who is to blame for the attacks? That one is easy... the blame rests solely on the murderers who carried it out. The government failed to protect us, yes, but that doesn't mean they are to blame. I don't blame Bush or Clinton, though I think both of them were victims of the lethargy and none of the Presidents over the last couple of decades have even come close to being a good leader. Indeed, I don't think this county has had a good leader in my lifetime.

All of that is irrelevant. The panel will hopefully come up with some good suggestions on how to improve our security, and future plots can be avoided.

In the meantime, the amazing public testimonies are available to the public via the C-SPAN website. The links are on the main page, or in their video archive. Full transcripts will be available at the commission website eventually, also.

I'm very interested in seeing the final reports from the commission. It ought to be a pretty big slam on everyone in national security.