This war will be much different from other wars. We will be fighting groups of people rather than another country. These people will be hard to find. We will be fighting a faceless enemy whose position and location will shift. And it will be a long war that may not end in my lifetime.

We are not fighting a war against a group that wants to occupy our country or carry off our riches. Rather we are fighting a war against a group that wants to rob us of our freedom and our security. And the question is, why?

The easy answer is that because the United States supports Israel in the middle east crisis we have become the infidel. During the Gulf War we were allowed to stage bombing raids from Saudi Arabia. The prime suspect, Osama bin Laden, thought that the infidel Americans should not be allowed in the country where Mecca is located and promised to avenge that occupation.

We are dealing with fanatics who hide behind their Muslin religion as justification for their actions. Minds that are so twisted that it can lead them to commit suicide and take thousands of people with them. In their minds they think that they are going to have an eternal life in heaven for giving their life in order to kill the infidels.

In my opinion, I think these terrorists have such a miserable life on earth that they probably do feel that they will have a better life on the other side. Look at the contrast between Israel and the rest of the Arab world. The Israelis are like Americans, capitalistic, progressive, technically advanced, and governed democratically. The Arab world basically consists of downtrodden people who are living 400 years in the past and governed by a dictator or potentate. Don't you think they are envious of the Americans and Israelis? Sure they are. And don't you think this is threatening to the Muslin powers? Of course. A strict and dogmatic religion such as Islam does not funtion very well in an environment of democracy. I'll bet that not many Arabs living in the United States wish to go back to their homeland.

My own reaction to the terrorist attack was anger. I am tired of the United States always trying to be the nice guy who wants to settle an argument with words. We are dealing with animals who want to kill us and negotiation is not a viable option. We have to prepare for a long term war. We must be prepared to use whatever force is needed to bring in Osama bin Laden. We don't need proof that he was the mastermind of the New York and Pentagon bombings. He is already implicated in the bombing of two U. S. Embassies in Africa in 1998. We can go after him on just those bombings alone. When he is captured I do not want him executed for that would only make him a martyr. Rather it would be preferable to have him balled and chained in a dungeon built on the ashes of the World Trade Center where he can be exhibited like an animal in the zoo. Relatives and friends of those killed in the attacks will have first crack at him.

The whole world is at risk of being annihilated by terrorist groups who, if not stopped, could eventually gain access to biological or nuclear weapons. The United States must be joined by the rest of the civilized nations in the world to kill the serpent that threatens to destroy us all. Not only should Afghanistan be put on notice that harboring terrorist puts them at peril with the United States but Iraq, Iran, Syria and Libya should be warned as well.

The only positive thing that came out of these terrorist attacks is that it brought Americans together again. We no longer are so concerned about what separates us from each other such as race, religion or economic status. Rather we are concerned about the thing that we all have in common and are in danger of losing - our freedom and the country that we love. Together we are entering a new era that I believe will result in a stronger and more united America.