Keep 9-11 out of politics

On Thursday, Sept. 11, the nation once again paused for a moment to remember the more than 3,000 innocent civilians, including Filipino Americans, who perished in the treacherous attacks on the United States by Muslim terrorists. The attacks were similar to the treacherous Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941.
On 9/11 seven years ago, fanatical Muslims followers of Al Qaeda’s Osama bin Laden hijacked several airlines loaded with passengers and used them as weapons to strike the two World Trade Center Towers in New York and the Pentagon in Washington D.C.
This dastardly act resulted in the declaration of war against terrorism in 2001 by President George W. Bush and the passage of laws by Congress that curtailed some of the basic freedoms to keep America safe. Americans have not complained about these curtailments as lone as the government can ensure their protection from future attacks.
Thankfully, for the past seven years no such terrorist act has occurred on US soil. But this is not the time for complacency. More Muslim fanatics may still be lurking around, waiting for an opportune moment to strike again..
In past hearings, Congress blamed the administration, particularly the security agencies for failing to detect what the terrorists were planning to do. Indeed, if the CIA and FBI were doing their duty at that time, it could have seen the signs occurring abroad, As early as in the mid-nineties, Philippine security agencies have passed on information to the US warning of attempts by Muslim extremists to hijack US-bound airlines to plunge them into the Pacific ocean or to hit American cities. In fact, the leader of the first attack on the World Trade Center in the nineties was wanted in the Philippines for an attempt on the life of the Pope who was visiting Manila at that time. Despite these warning signs, the security agencies slept.
As the nation solemnly commemorates the anniversary of 9/11 in an election year, candidates should avoid using 9/11 as fodder to advance their political careers or gain more adherents to their cause. That would be dishonoring the memory of the victims of that dastardly act.