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To mark the 6th anniversary of that horrible day in American history, many in the Bush administration cite the lack of a follow-up attack as a testament to the effectiveness of policies enacted since 2001. And yet the ex-Inspector General of Homeland Security, Clark Kent Ervin, has a completely different take on that issue. He thinks that we haven't been attacked since 9/11 because of two things: 1) security is definitely tighter now than it was then, and 2) Al-qaeda is waiting and planning to conduct a far more spectacular attack (in fact, Bin Laden has said as much since 2001).

Mr. Ervin, a Republican, has even written a book about our very real vulnerability, entitled, "Open Target: Where America Is Vulnerable to Attack." In it, he speaks about how he was fired from his job for speaking the truth about how lame our government has been in addressing our security concerns:

Appointed acting inspector general of the Department of Homeland Security in January 2003, Ervin left after 18 months when Congress refused to confirm him. The reason, he writes, is that he did his job too well, pointing out so much mismanagement and so many security lapses that the bureaucracy turned against him. Ervin sounds the alarm and attempts to settle scores in this book, a detailed warning that America remains frighteningly vulnerable to terrorism. Ervin explores the homeland's weaknesses, describes what the DHS should be doing and how it falls short. Ports, airlines, "soft targets" such as stadiums and critical infrastructure like the water supply must be further secured, as must mass transit (which receives a fraction the funding aviation does). Fragmented intelligence allowed the 9/11 plotters to succeed, but the DHS has not yet achieved coordination of intelligence. Finally, the massive DHS budget requires the establishment of strict accounting and anti-fraud policies. Though the author notes progress in some areas, he thinks the department has made woefully inadequate headway, is incompetently administered and starved for funds.

A very disconcerting viewpoint, indeed. Get this book and read it.

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