In a May 5 column in Forbes, Paul Johnson, an eminent British historian and author, mentioned how glad he is that President Bush is still around. He went on to comment that since 9/11, there have been no attacks on the U.S. by Muslim fundamentalists.

Why? Their prime objective certainly continues to be attacking our homeland.

Johnson gives credit to Bush and his team, building a security system of impressive strength and sensitivity, yet to be breached. Also, the suicide bombers fear being sent to Guantanamo more than they fear death itself.

At the time of 9/11, the battlefield was the undefended West, with its great, peaceful cities. Now, our president has switched the war’s theater of operations to the death-dealers’ territory.

Sadly, it is true that more than 4,000 U.S. servicemen and women have been killed in the five-year conflict. But considering the threat to the U.S. populace posed by the terrorists, the total is small.

In World War I, up to 60,000 casualties were inflicted in a single day. In World War II, there were many occasions when the U.S. and Britain lost more than 4,000 men in a single-day operation.

How many Muslim fanatics have been killed by the Allies or each other in Sunni-Shiite clashes? No numbers are available, but estimates are in the hundreds of thousands.

To dispose of such terrorists, one by one, in our country, as opposed to their own homeland, would be near impossible.

Marcel R. Morin, Lewiston