By William Lewis
Since Washington, D.C., is the national capital, it could be said that Boston is the spiritual capital of our country from the standpoint that it was in April 1775 that the Revolutionary War began with the Battles of Lexington and Concord between American patriots and British soldiers. These military engagements occurred outside Boston and triggered a war that would last seven years.
During that period, the other 12 colonies rallied behind Boston by sending them supplies, including some military hardware. The spark of revolution that began in Boston soon spread to the other colonies. George Washington would emerge as the ultimate military commander and after seven years of conflict won the war and secured American freedom.
Today in Boston a different kind of war has emerged. It is a war not of battles on battlefields, but a terrorist attack against civilian populations. The attack on the World Trade Center was followed several years later by the massacre at Fort Hood, Texas, and now the bombing at the Boston Marathon, which involved several hundred casualties.
These attacks are in addition to planned attacks that failed. As a nation we cannot allow these attacks to occur without a response. It is the first obligation of a government to protect its citizens against all harm, foreign and domestic. This will mean more security at home provided by law enforcement and our military forces. It will mean more offensive warfare against terrorist training centers and command posts. Our response should be aggressive and continual.
The attacks on our peace have been so vicious and ruthless that a military response seems to be the prime answer. It cannot be said how long our war against terrorism will go on, but it may be for a long time. This will mean tightening restrictions on immigration policy as to who is allowed in our country and for what purpose and for how long. The days of newly arrived immigrants being allowed to roam freely throughout our nation are over.
The time of the greatest influx of immigrants occurred from 1880-1910. The people who came to our country then wanted to build a new life for themselves and worked toward the American Dream of success. Many of them achieved success, but today some immigrants have other reasons for coming to America. Some of these reasons are not in the best interests of American ideals.
Years ago after World War II, we fought what was called the Cold War, which involved free democracies led by the United States confronting communism. This took place between 1945 and 1990. During that time, terrorism was hardly a factor. Today we face a new kind of warfare. It will mean an entirely different kind of training for our police and military forces.
Security will be of paramount consideration. For our government not to respond aggressively to terrorist attacks would indicate a sign of weakness. In response to terrorism, we should respond immediately.
In the last 50 years, progress has been made in the worlds of science and technology, but we cannot say that the world is a safer place than it was in previous years.
