"We are at war; we are at war against al-Qaida," President Obama announced on Thursday in the White House, a statement that has the entire country on its toes. The speech was directed toward the situation with terrorist attacks against America. (Mostly aimed toward the clear sign of terrorism with the Delta Air Lines flight arriving from Amsterdam to Detroit on Dec. 25.)
In the speech, President Obama took direct blame for allowing accused terrorist Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab to board the flight to the U.S. Which he should. Tell me, how did this terrorist proceeded to enter without a passport and with explosives? When I went through customs on my way back from my study abroad program in London, Heathrow Airport security took all my contents out of my bag because of jar of fondue that set the machine off. And on top of that my baggage, my coat and I were searched again once I tried to board the actual plane to America, as well as my passport being checked again.
A witness in Amsterdam saw Abdulmutallab approach the gate with a friend, who was dressed in an expensive suit. The man had asked the ticket agents if Abdulmutallab could board without a passport. "He's from Sudan," the man said, "We do this all the time." Clearly, as one article says, the man was trying to portray Abdulmutallab as Sudanese refugee.
And tell me why instead of the ticket agents being firm and logically saying no, they instead referred the terrorist to her manager. Why are people even thinking twice about letting anyone board an airplane to America without a passport? Especially if they're obviously not American. There shouldn't be any hesitation, they should be trained to say no without thought.
This country is just letting terrorists come into America if they are thinking twice about checking passports. You'd think after 9/11 there would be firmer action already taking place, and yet it just now that President Obama is declaring war against this terrorist group.
And I can't comprehend how you can declare war on al-Qaida. How do you declare war on a group of people when you don't know where they all exist?
And if President Obama did declare war on al-Qaida, then why isn't Abdulmutallab's trial being run as a military tribunal? George Washington used military tribunals during the American Revolution, and Andrew Jackson used it during the War of 1812. I see no difference. If this man is most likely a terrorist for al-Qaida, then why shouldn't he be tried in this manner?
Maybe terrorism seems far away to us in Muncie. But in reality Indiana isn't far from Michigan, where the plane was to land. This is hitting close to home, and you've got to be extremely naïve to think that this won't start directly affecting us in Indiana soon. America — every single state — is at war with al-Qaida.
I'm not really sure how this war is going to go about. Or how we're going to find members of al-Qaida when they could be anywhere, in numbers we aren't aware of. But I do know that America needs to stick together now more than at any other time. Nuclear bombs are being developed, terrorists are making even more attacks and we still have troops in places that have long since expired our aid.
President Obama came into his office preaching change; I really hope this change he is bringing leads to something that will benefit America.
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