B.W. COOK -- NOTEBOOK

Our nation, our world, our lives changed Tuesday.

We will never be the same again. The attacks on America have destroyed

innocent lives. They have also destroyed our security and our trust.

And they could very well have affected my own family.

My cousin Sunny in Philadelphia called me Tuesday crying hysterically.

I was unable to console her. Finally, the words come together.

“We can’t reach Valerie, Steve or Joan. I’ve called all the numbers,�

she shares, sobbing. “We don’t know. We just don’t know.�

Valerie, Steve and Joan are my family members. They had offices in the

World Trade Center. We pray for their safety. Now we await some word of

their fate. My anger over the attack turned personal. Until my cousin

called me, it had not occurred to me that my relatives were in danger.

As I gathered my thoughts Tuesday, the electronic media filled the

room in which I write, reporting projected numbers of casualties.

“There were some 2,400 casualties at Pearl Harbor,� says one reporter.

“There could be 50,000 deaths in New York alone.�

Someone in the office changed the channel, and video was shown of

Palestinians, including women and children, cheering in the streets of

Jerusalem, celebrating victory over the death and destruction on American

soil. The Internet spits out world reaction.

One Islamic militant group leader reportedly said, “No doubt this is

the result of injustice the U.S. practices against the weak in the world.

The U.S. has been sowing the seeds of injustice and racial discrimination

against the weak, and therefore the U.S. is collecting now the harvest of

what it did.�

Like most Americans, I was in shock over the devastation. I listened

as television reporters discussed the events, blabbing on and on over the

issues of military preparation, debating how a civilized nation will deal

with the terrorism of the 21st century.

Responsible voices stress the strength of our nation. It is important

to convey the fact that America is much greater than the sum of the

damage inflicted upon the nation by the actions of a presumable few.

Amid the platitudes calling for calm, for tolerance, for sanity, we

must face the reality that this nation must change. We can no longer

accept the fact that our love of freedom prohibits the pursuit of

policies designed to protect and defend America. We know that freedom is

not free. What we do not know in the confusion of this atrocity is how to

protect freedom without compromising its basic tenets.

We have no time for disbelief. Tough questions arise. Why were we

unprepared? There are very few organizations in the world with the

ability to conduct such an operation. Why has American and European

intelligence failed?

How is it possible that multiple American aircraft could be

simultaneously hijacked and turned into weapons of mass destruction

against this nation? What will the United States do in response?

News reporters on television filling time suggest that America cannot

allow terrorist actions to inflict this sort of damage without response.

What sort of response? Are we prepared to prevent further attacks?

As the World Trade Center imploded in the shadow of the Statue of

Liberty, the irony of the juxtaposition of monuments is a chilling

reminder that while we “open our arms to the huddled masses yearning to

breath free,� we have also opened our borders to those who would rather

see America be undermined as retribution for the supposed injustices.

America is the leader of civilized nations dedicated to financially

supporting the poor and oppressed worldwide. We have made mistakes.

The events of Sept. 11 were not acts of terrorism. They were acts of

war. Our government must demand that any country harboring our enemies

turn them over at once or face military consequences.

We must arm our commercial aircraft with trained weapons experts.

Metal detectors manned by minimum-wage employees are a joke. Clearly, our

immigration polices need reform, even at the potential interference with

the ease of movement and freedom we cherish.

Political correctness died Tuesday along with the countless victims.

It is time to face reality. There is evil in our midst. We must face the

evil head on and eradicate it.

America will respond. May the response be effective, lasting, and

liberating. We will rebuild the World Trade Center. May it be taller and

stronger. May we once again feel secure, and trust in people and the

intangible and precious rights of freedom. This will take time and

action, and great debate.

Our collective hearts go out to all who suffer in this great and

horrific loss.

For me, may my family members walk out of the rubble, wipe off the

soot and breath deeply and freely in the great American city of New York.

* B.W. COOK covers society news for the Daily Pilot.