The events of Sept. 11, 2001 (and I despise using the date as a propper noun; it sounds like a holiday, not a tragedy), were NOT acts of war, they were acts of terrorism. Allow me to explain.

War is an open act between two or more nations. If it is one nation, it is a civil war. Terrorism defies all conventions of war. It strikes without warning, without remorse, and - all too often - without remedy.

This “war” we are about to enter seems to have the same air of futility as the ongoing “war on drugs.” Likewise, our military strategey for hunting down those responsible for the chaos around the world is as effective as sending Barney Fife down Main Street in Atlanta to “clean up the streets.”

We are trying to match war vs. terrorism. It is a fight that the battlefield becomes the Earth, and the casualties far too high to withstand. In short, neither side will ever claim victory, nor is threat-annihilation possible.

Stronger “Homeland Security” (whatever happened to the Department of Defense?) has become our only option, but we as a nation cannot live in fear. We chase these cowards from one end of the Earth to the other, but it is likened to playing “Where in the World is Carmen SanDiego?” In war, your enemy is clear, and his forces have risen from the ground to face you. We are chasing ghosts.

There will never be a time when terrorists cannot operate, but there can be a time without war.

Stephen Yeargin is a sophomore Communications major from Nashville.