Put The Blame Where It Belongs

Just who started this war? My recollection is that en masse and definitive strikes on our shores occurred on September 11, 2001. What happened on that day could not be ignored, at least at the time--the devastation was too great and too close.

And didn't the 9/11 Commission, with 20/20 hindsight, criticize our government for not heeding the warning signs, and didn't that commission recommend tightening-up our national security?

Apparently, the ACLU feels that some of these security measures are undermining scientific developments.

Washington Post:

ACLU Says Bush Is Restricting Science
The Associated Press (published in the Washington Post)
Wednesday, June 22, 2005

"WASHINGTON -- The American Civil Liberties Union charged Tuesday that the Bush administration is placing science under siege by overzealously tightening restrictions on information, individuals and technology in the name of homeland security.

"The administration 'has sought to impose growing restrictions on the free flow of scientific information, unreasonable barriers on the use of scientific materials and increased monitoring of and restrictions on foreign university students, the ACLU said....

"Robert Hopkins of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy criticized the ACLU for seeking to politicize the issue.

"'The report chooses to criticize actions taken to address security concerns in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attack,' Hopkins said. 'The administration has worked in good faith with serious members of the science community, including the National Academies, to determine the best way to enable the conduct of science without providing terrorists with a road map for pursuing their aims.'

"Indeed, the National Academy of Sciences delayed publication of an article at the request of the Department of Health and Human Services over concerns the paper could provide terrorists information on poisoning the milk supply....

"But the ACLU contends that the administration has been overzealous, reversing past government openness by creating a presumption of secrecy and lengthening classification periods.

"The report lists other science restrictions, including limiting the access of foreign scholars to information, restricting their participation in some areas of research and tightening visa rules with the result of blocking or delaying visits to this country by foreign students and teachers...."

Previous to 9/11, I taught English as a Second Language to adults at a Korean Learning Center. When the visa regulations tightened, I found myself without a job because the number of foreign students was greatly reduced. Now, I seriously doubt that any of my students, most of them South Koreans, posed any threat. And I miss my job as an adult ESL teacher because adult students are often more serious about learning than are teenagers or youngsters.

I believe, however, that losing my job was a small price to pay for improving national security. Our universities are fonts of information for those desiring access to nuclear material, and I believe that our President is right to limit access to such material. In fact, Saddam's nuclear-development specialist, Mahdi Obeidi, the author of The Bomb In My Garden, has pointed out that he visited several universities, including the University of Virginia, to obtain information which he used to develop nuclear centrifuges, each capable of producing one bomb per year.

I, for one, never want to see another day like September 11, 2001. Airplanes flying into buildings was a tragedy and a wake-up call. A nuclear attack would be even worse and could well bring about a hideous, new world order--a whole world held hostage and under siege.

Note: Red indicates amendment to previous version.
A tip of my hat to Mustang, who pointed out the shortcomings of the first draft.