Mark Fiore: Prepared to prevail

Thunderous roars filled the air yesterday throughout both the United States and Afghanistan. But the source of those roars could not be more different -- as bombs fell on Afghanistan in loud explosions, cheers erupted in the stands of America's football stadiums.

The time has come for Osama bin Laden and the Taliban to pay for their Sept. 11 crimes -- and Americans are rightly applauding the just desserts. But Americans are also right in worrying that payback raises the stakes in the world's battle against terrorism.

Nonetheless, fears of further terrorist attacks on the U.S. in response to the military campaign in Afghanistan have become overblown -- and have been wrongly used as propaganda by Americans opposing U.S. retaliation.

No doubt, military campaigns always carry risk. The notion of "mutually assured destruction" pervaded the Cold War, for example, as Americans and Soviets feared that an attack on one of the nations would lead to a retaliatory attack on the other -- which would lead to endless rounds of devastating retaliation.

But the world stage is vastly changed today. First and foremost, no evidence indicates that bin Laden and his terrorist network, al-Qaeda, have the capability to retaliate in the way the Soviet Union might have. Most of the weapons of the Taliban are relics of the 1980s, and yesterday's attacks proved that Afghanistan lacks the ability to even prevent assaults on its own soil.

Moreover, the previous terrorist attacks on the U.S. took far more than a few weeks for bin Laden to orchestrate. "Most of the kinds of attacks that we've seen tend to have been planned months and months and months and in some cases years in advance," Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said yesterday. As such, any impending attacks on the U.S. can likely not be seen as responses to American military action.

The possibility still exists, however, that plans for such an attack were already underway -- or that al-Qaeda is more equipped than expected to launch a quick response. But here again, the U.S. has the upper hand.

President Bush declared in his speech to the nation that yesterday's campaign is part of "sustained, comprehensive and relentless operations to drive [terrorists] out and bring them to justice." Before long, the Taliban will begin to erode and ultimately collapse -- and bin Laden may soon find himself in a grave.

At the same time, while the nation suffered an intelligence lapse with the Sept. 11 atrocities, all indications point to heightened intelligence efforts since then. With the U.S. on high alert, the odds that bin Laden could successfully pull off another attack seem remarkably remote. Indeed, despite the intelligence failure of Sept. 11, U.S. intelligence has bewildering capabilities -- so much so that bombings targeted throughout the country were thwarted during the millennial new year.

Along with the increased intelligence, the nation's security measures are at unprecedented heights, with the National Guard looking over the country's airports and basic security screenings raised to new levels. Security checkpoints at airports even involve passengers being asked to open their belt buckles if hand-held security wands detect suspicions.

In New York City, moreover, Mayor Rudolph Giuliani announced increased security measures, including more protection for the Empire State Building and the possibility for subway closings in response to any threats.

The heightened state of alert should show the world that the U.S. is prepared for any further attacks. It should also give peace of mind to American citizens. As President Bush proclaimed yesterday, "We will not waiver, we will not tire, we will not falter and we will not fail. Peace and freedom will prevail."

Mark Fiore is a third-year Law School student and a 1999 College graduate from Spring Park, Minn.

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