BeyondGenius.com

The New York Times reported today that the Central Intelligence Agency has closed a unit that for a decade had the mission of hunting Osama bin Laden and his top lieutenants.

The unit, known as Alec Station, was disbanded late last year and its analysts reassigned within the C.I.A. Counterterrorist Center, officials said. 

The realignment of personnel reflects the view that Al Qaeda is no longer as hierarchical as it once was and a view within the agency that bin Laden was no longer the threat he once was. One intelligence official said that it reflected a view that the CIA had a greater grasp of the organization but that this view is widely contested with some arguing that it could denigrate our operations against Al Qaeda. 

After all this time, bin Laden and Al Qaeda still dominate our headlines and security concerns.  Most Americans find it hard to believe that finding and dispatching him could be this difficult.  For sure, he is one man, deep in hiding, located somewhere in the world, but his tentacles reach far and he is never alone.  There is a support structure, a large group of local followers, and communication’s links.  Find those and you find the man. 

With all of our soldiers in harm’s way these days, we should not reduce our focus or our zeal for finding and destroying this man.  Our five year anniversary of September 11^th is just around the corner.

It would be nice to wake up on September 11^th in a world without bin Laden and some of his friends.