Well. This is certainly gloom and doom compared to the Berger Socks dialog.

We are suffering from a lack of focus, and a weakening of political will. We could have used our veto in the U.N. but did not. Too politically hot right now I would guess.

The decade ahead will see the changes of many governments. The Arabic states cannot hold. The complacent will be increasingly marginalized in world politics. Those who engage in world policing are going to be very busy, and be the target of multiple attacks from multiple sources.

We have not the ability to defend ourselves from the asymmetrical nature of the attacks and will be hit and hit hard. I wish it to be otherwise and hope that it is. Our intelligence is weak and our ability to strengthen it is undermined by our own distaste of the tasks required.

With weak intelligence, we will be subject to much internal dissent about actions outside of our borders. Only fresh memories of attacks will instill the decisiveness to take the attack to others.

This mess is going to require strong and compelling leadership. It is going to require effective communication. It is going to require a recalculation of our national priorities.

Lots of pre-war conceptions about priorities are going to be altered and the alterations will cause much outcry.