here did the time go ? - five years since the horrendous attack on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and the third aircraft which crashed in the field in Pennsylvania - aimed at, who knows for sure; the White House or Congress, most likely. Just that brief passage of time has seen the initial outpouring of shared concern, respect and mass sympathy around the world, turned into significant criticism and disrespect for the United States. At home we endure an administration of such arrogance as to be unable to accept criticism and wholly unrepentant for engaging in a war on completely false grounds.
President Bush's endless war on terror in response to 9/11 became the reason for an illegal pre-emptive military invasion. To be sure many of the President's policies were endorsed by Republicans and Democrats alike.
There are so many questions, unanswered, or unsatisfactorily responded to; who financed the attacks and how is it that the 9/11 Commission refuse to pursue the question?
Why did the administration so quickly alter the focus from al-Qaeda to Iraq, despite the knowledge that Iraq and Saddam had absolutely no connection to the events of 9/11?
Obviously, understandably, many millions of people here and elsewhere are still grappling with the immensity of what occurred on that day. But the New York Times put it clearly in an editorial, acknowledging that the United States had lost the feeling of unity and purpose which gripped the nation in the aftermath of the attacks, and lamented a lost opportunity wrote, "When we measure the possibilities created by 9/11 against what we have actually accomplished, it is clear that we have found one way after another to compound the tragedy".
Believe what you will, but I am convinced that five years after, the world is a more dangerous place and instead of wiping out al-Qaeda, Mr.Bush has created many new enemies.
Here's a line from Egypt's semi-official Al-Ahram, "Five years ago, the history of the world changed twice, once in the hands of Bin Laden and his gang, and once in the hands of Bin Bush and his administration."

God Bless the bereaved families of 9/11.
God Bless our men and women in uniform.
God help us to defeat the radical extremists.
Here's to the future with more inspired leadership.