My 4th of July celebration went off as I described it yesterday. The family gathered, the rain held off and a good time was had by all. Baby Ella was the guest of honor and everyone vied for their time to hold her. Baby Liam was kicking around in his mother's tummy wanting to be a part of the action. We could see him any day now.  It is a good time in our family.

But it is time to turn our attention back to the world at large. Most do not wish America many happy returns. A few items this morning point to the threat of terrorist attack as the main issue staring us in the face.

After the Next Attack

David Ignatius asks, "How would America react to a future terrorist attack? Would the country come together to combat its adversaries, or would it pull further apart?"

He notes the foiled British car bomb attacks last week as well as efforts to attack us on our soil. No one it seems is really ready. We are polarized politically without a clear focus on the perils that face us. He figures a terrorist attack would deepen the divide. People would blame President Bush for stirring hatred against us and others would  point to a lack of preparedness.

in critical areas we are still woefully unprepared for a nuclear of chemical-biological attack.

It's Not the Economy Stupid

Meanwhile, in today's WSJ Daniel Henninger shows the real issue of the American presidential election is security. 

Rethinking political management amid deep partisan division would be a dandy avocation if we lived in normal times, say Sept. 10, 2001. But we don't. Last weekend, the forces of civilization foiled planned barbarian bombings and mass death for innocent civilians in London and Glasgow. One month ago, they foiled a plot to blow up the gasoline fuel pipeline at JFK airport. A month before that they arrested six men, enraptured by jihadist videos, who concluded it was their life's goal to blow up soldiers at Fort Dix, N.J. Before that they foiled a well-advanced plot to demolish U.S.-bound airliners over the Atlantic. This week Spain completed its trial of 28 people charged with the 2004 Madrid train bombing that killed 191.

I haven't conducted a poll, but my guess is this is the real reason many in the U.S. feel the country is on the wrong track. The possibility of mass, mortal risk is the one constant in life today; it's always floating beneath the changing surface of stock prices, gasoline prices or Sen. Obama's blueprints for universal health care.

Henninger concludes:

It's not the economy this time, stupid. It's terrorism. No matter how low George Bush falls in the polls the next 18 months, "what to do about terrorism" is going to be the No. 1 voting issue in November 2008 because the Glasgow/JFK/Fort Dix/Heathrow/Madrid bombers are still going to be at play in November 2008.

Some are saying this could turn out to be a summer of terror. If so, we may find ourselves woefully unprepared in many ways to deal with the aftermath. Let's hope they are wrong.

45 Muslim Doctors Planned US Terror Raids

British investigators have found details of plots to include medical doctors in terrorist attacks. This new twist puts a wet blanket on the common idea that terrorists are the product of poverty and disadvantage. These doctors are privileged, educated and angry. They are driven by ideology. A very dangerous mix.