Tom Osborne, October 21, 2002

Lately it seems as though every time we turn on the television or read a newspaper -- or go about our daily routines -- we are assaulted by images of violence taking the lives of innocent people. A robbery going lethally awry in Norfolk. A sniper on the loose, executing victims one at a time around the U.S. capital. And, the bombing of two packed nightclubs in Bali, Indonesia, an island that had until days ago been synonymous with peace, beauty, relaxation. Nearly 200 dead and at least 300 seriously wounded. While these events appear to be linked simply by the fact that innocent people lost their lives, they beg the same two questions: What is going on in our world? How do we live in this frightening new reality?

The recent bombing struck a personal chord for me. Jake Young, an All-American football player and good friend, is listed among the handful of Americans missing or killed -- according to early reports -- in the Bali blast. Both a gifted athlete and an able student, Jake was named an Academic All-American in both 1988 and 1989, and was named a Top Six award winner by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for his exemplary athletic and academic ability and strong character. A young man with a wife and child, a home in the Midwest and a new job, Jake is emblematic of the innocent lives changed by terrorists who do not differentiate between civilians and military officials. If we continue to wait for terrorists to cease firing on innocent men, women and children, I fear that many other families will be directly affected.

Terrorists who use violence as a tool have no goal other than bloodshed and violence. Violence does not communicate a political message or a sensible desire. Violence begets only violence. Similarly, those who traffic in violence are not open to negotiation. They cannot be appeased by diplomacy. They do not comprehend reason.

We must show terrorists around the world that America and her allies will not tolerate the barbaric destruction of innocent lives for any purpose. To do so, America must be prepared and willing to wage the war on terrorism on multiple fronts. We have successfully done so during both World Wars, and we can do so again. The war on global terrorism, on every stage, will not be a massive mobilization of American troops like the World Wars. Instead, it will be a war fought with intelligence and discretion. Not every victory will garner a headline. In fact, we will know little of the successful prosecution of the war, because many victories will be cloaked in secrecy.

The methods of war have changed and now move quietly; however, the urgency of action grows more demanding with each passing day. Unfortunately, we have to expect more terrorist attacks on Americans and our allies on our own soil and around the world. But we do not have to sit idly by. We cannot afford to wait for appeasement to fail, and we will not wait.

Congressman Tom Osborne represents the Nebraska's Third Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives.