As much of the press looks to the past, trying to figure out who knew what and when about terrorists before September 11, I'm a little more concerned with what our country and the war machine might do next. There is talk of moving in on the Philippines, there are continual threats against Iraq, there is no end to the terrorist warnings in the US. Who's next? If it were up to me, there would be no next.

I really think a good defense is the best offense when dealing with terrorists. What made America so powerful in the wake of the twin towers was the resolve of the nation as a whole. We did not break down and give up when planes were hijacked. Out of the four planes successfully hijacked, only two succeeded in their mission, and that was before we were prepared. Now, I would wager that half the plane would turn on any person or group who attempted a mid-air take over. Remember the guy with the bomb in his shoe? The other passengers couldn't punch him enough. It isn't all of the airport security that makes us safer, it's the general resolve of Americans not to let terrorists succeed.

We will not stop terrorism by invading other countries. We could go into the Philippines, Iraq, Yemen and mow down everything we see, and it will still not accomplish the goal of eliminating terrorism. Look at Afghanistan. We blew up a lot of rocks, shot up a bunch of Al-Queda folks, told the people to let girls go to school, and we still keep a military presence around in case the bad guys come back. Mission accomplished? I really don't know.

Do we need to move on to Iraq and do the same thing? I have no doubts that our military could successfully overthrow Saddam, but what are we going to do with the place? Are we going to appoint a different group of Muslim extremists into power? The U.S. has always been good when prosecuting war. Most of the problems have come after the fighting has stopped. Remember after WWII when we decided that Russia would take a quarter of Berlin and Germany to rehabilitate. Oops.

The vice president says another terrorist attack will occur. The government has a five-tier terrorist warning system that explains how we should feel each day. "Look honey, we only have to be Guarded today. I guess we can go to the beach feeling fairly safe." Airports still guarantee that you spend more time getting through to the terminal than you do in the air. I hate to point this out, but I've never felt completely safe in this country. It has nothing to do with terrorists. It has to do with the dangers and risks of everyday life.

I encourage our current leaders to consider other anti-terrorist options to dropping bombs on nations we don't like. The blowing up of the World Trade Center was a tangible affront to our way of life. A rallying cry that would carry us to battle halfway around the world. Remember the Alamo! Remember the Maine! Remember Pearl Harbor! Remember the WTC! We shouldn't use the same tragic event to go after as many enemies as we can muster forces against.

This is Memorial Day Weekend. This chunk of time signifies that we all made it through the cold part of the year. It's also the time when we honor veterans and their families for fighting for our country. We have two holidays set aside for honoring veterans, and in the immortal words of Bart Simpson "Well maybe they should have three. I'm Bart Simpson."

I've never considered myself a hawk or a dove when it comes to war. Some violence appears to be inevitable while on other occasions it does not seem to make any sense at all. Since last Memorial Day, the United States was attacked, and we responded with resounding force and support. But the farther we get away from the event, the less it seems pertinent to go after anyone else. We showed what we can do, and the world knows not to mess with us. Shouldn't we just leave it at that until someone is fool enough to try again?

Chris Jungle warns of possible terror and happiness in the future.