The Man Who Knew - John O'Neill (UPATED)

UPDATE: ABC now has the link up where you can watch Night One of The Path to 9/11 online.
Click here to watch.
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I watched The Path to 9/11 last night. Not bad - stuck pretty well with the facts as we know them. What amazed me were the actors playing the roles of well-known politicos - they fit quite well. It did leave me angry - but not just with the failures of the Clinton Administration. It left me even more angry with the terrorists who want to tear our country down and the people that offer aid and comfort to them.

My hubby, who has not followed politics and the war on terrorism as much as I have, was enthralled by the docu-drama. He picked up on several key points especially the "terrorism treated like a law enforcement issue". At the end of the show, he even remarked "boy they sure blew their chances to get bin Laden."

I was disappointed at the editing based on the video clips I had watched online - especially the comment from Richard Clarke about Clinton having the impeachment/Lewinsky thing around his neck. I would have liked more than just a passing mention of the Khobar Towers terrorist attack and Somali. I'm almost afraid to watch tonight's installment. As bad as part one made Clinton and his administration look, I can't imagine ABC (with its own Bush bashing history) to miss an opportunity to slam President Bush and his administration. But I'll still be watching.

One thing that really piqued my interest was John O'Neill. I must admit that I have not read much about him. I am not sure why but it never really caught my attention. But the movie really made me want to find out more about him. MacsMind has a post up with a link to PBS Frontline's show about John O'Neill. I cannot stress enough how informative the site is. There is a great interactive map called "connecting the dots" which really ties things together (and makes much more sense after watching the movie).

What a tragic irony that O'Neill was killed in the September 11 terrorist attacks - after all his years of tracking al Qaeda and terrorists.

So check out the PBS site. It is a great followup for last night's "The Path to 9/11". If you get a chance, you should also read Stephen Emerson's American Jihad. Robert Spencer's website "Jihad Watch" is another site that should be bookmarked.

It is absolutely essential that we know about the terrorists that are already on American soil and how they are working to increase their ranks. We cannot ignore it or wish it away. We found that out in a brutal manner five years ago today.