First, you've got to get mad

It's been six years since the mass terrorist attack on the U.S. The days following Sept. 11, 2001, were characterized by patriotic fervor (remember the little flags on the cars?) mixed with the desire to hunt down Osama. People were mad. Some channeled that anger into enlisting, and many since have given their lives in Afghanistan or Iraq. But as the story of 9/11 faded away, and those little American car flags wound up in muddy gutters, so much of that passion to fight terrorism is gone -- along with any desire to learn the true nature of the threat.

I've spent the past few years writing about terrorism and studying the Islamic threat. I've met brave Muslims who have vociferously opposed radicalism, many risking jail time in their native countries to voice their opinions on blogs or YouTube; I've also met far too many passive enablers whose actions and rhetoric are music to the ears of al-Qaida. I've received threats from extremists and begun doing guest commentary for Al-Jazeera. I've spent the past several months learning Arabic, and years studying the finely woven net of terrorist organizations that has slipped into once-unlikely nations. I've witnessed Osama bin Laden become a political pawn, surely much to his delight. And yet, I've only scratched the surface in my research in learning.

I think the best way to spend 9-11 is watching the Golden Globe-winning movie "Osama," the first movie shot in Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban and starring ordinary Afghans -- the extraordinary cast was literally found on the streets and in refugee camps, and even former Taliban members played the bad guys. It's a stark reminder of why we were attacked: The draconian living hell under Taliban rule is the caliphate envisioned for the world by al-Qaida and other jihadi groups. "Osama," incidentally, is the name assumed by the lead character, a girl who must disguise herself as a boy simply to work and feed her all-female family that is not allowed to leave the house (because no more male relatives existed to accompany them). But director Siddiq Barmak picked the common regional name for another reason: "I really wanted to tell that every horrible thing that happened in Afghanistan -- a terrible situation -- was because of Osama Bin Laden. In my film, nobody has their own personal name because they lost their own identity. In my opinion, Osama Bin Laden was behind all of this losing."

Politicking will go on and on, and terrorism will only become more politicized in Campaign 2008. But the reality remains: Negotiation goes against all that the jihadists fight for. We are "invited" to convert, and if we refuse we are marked for death. If these are unacceptable terms, we must be willing to fight for a long time on an unconventional battlefield. We have to fight. And we have to fight them, not each other.

But first, we've got to get mad...