Excuse me, but the government had plenty of chances to understand the threat of an airliner used as a terrorist weapon and the significance of the targets that day. I'm absolutely certain, by the time Bush got that earful, that the intelligence agencies and military knew exactly what they were facing. I had finished reading the Tom Clancy novel where the last chapter had described the use of a 747 to plow into the Capitol Bldg, killing half of our government. I finished it the night of September 10th. That book had been written years earlier. From the moment the first news report came on I knew these were no accidents and I would hope I'd have a great deal less insight than the experts in international terrorism. We've found out recently that the president and intelligence agencies had prior knowledge of the intent of Al-Quaida to use airliners as an instrument of terror. We certainly knew Bin Laden had the World Trade Centers in his crosshairs.

So here's this scenario. The president has whispered into his ear all the information needed to deduce that our country is under a major terrorist attack and his concern is for the children in the room? I'm sorry, that might be a noble passing notion but immediately it's his job to place priorities and the needs of millions outweigh the needs of those children. There were plenty of adults in the room to delegate the comfort of the children to. "Children, I've just been told that a matter of national importance has come up and I must leave you. Thank you for giving me this opportunity."

But maybe you're right and the guy that whispered in his ear was his stockbroker saying "George, you better get out of the market soon. An airliner crashed into a financial building in New York." Even if the info given to the president at that time was not complete, the finger points to his staff as to why they had no clue what was going on. Sure the news media was confused. They're reporters, writers not military and terrorism strategists armed with daily assessments and training scenarios based on exactly what transpired. The executive branch of government broke down that day, some of it based on the gall and twisted genius of Bin Laden, but a great deal based on pure incompetence.