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Terrorism is not new, but the scale and audacity of the attacks in New York and Washington make it obvious that familiar defensive strategies are inadequate and that the fight against terror must move from the periphery to the center of American national security planning and operations. An unconventional and frightening assault on the American homeland has commenced. The American people and their leaders must mobilize the resources to meet it.
...Americans have long known that these resentments existed. The nation must now recognize and address the fact that hatred has turned into a malignant threat that can destabilize the underpinnings of the world economy and civil society. The World Trade Center was not just a symbol of American prosperity. It was an economic nerve center.
As horrible as it is to imagine, the United States must also consider a future in which the assaults carried out yesterday may be overshadowed by even more lethal nuclear, biological or chemical attacks by terrorists. We have long known that these dangers could be part of our future. It is now clear they may be nearer than most people thought. A concerted national effort to remake the nation's defenses must begin immediately.
NOTE: This is an editorial published by NY Times a day after the attack.
