The 9/11 Commission Report

Coming in at 447 pages plus 119 pages of footnotes, the Final Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States is not a quick read. It is quite readable, however, and its contents are informative. It explores background on Usama Bin Ladin and al Qaeda, attacks on Americans before 9/11, U.S. intelligence and counter-terrorism efforts, and what happened and didn't happen before, during, and after September 11, 2001. It concludes with the recommendations of the commssion.

The complexity of the federal government stood out to me. We have numerous agencies and sub-agencies and directors of this and secretaries of that, even more than you normally hear about. With so many cooks in the kitchen, I can almost imagine how something like the September 11th attacks could slip through the cracks. On the other hand, with all of the personnel and regulations and funding we already had, I am skeptical that new officials, new laws, and new spending will make things better.

The authoring commission was not fully independent of the government establishment. This report does not answer all of the questions about 9/11, and it includes little tidbits that raise more questions in my mind. The final recommendations mention civil liberties, but the emphasis is on more government. If we give up our liberty for security, then the bad guys will win. (Authorized edition printed by R.R. Donnelley, 2004)