How is Osama Bin Laden dominating our world?

Is Osama Bin Laden winning after all? Until recently I would have derided such a thought. How could a tinpot fanatic who is either dead or shut in some mountain hideout hold the world to ransom for five years? It would stretch the imagination of an Ian Fleming.

Now I am beginning to wonder. Not a day passes without some new sign of Bin Laden’s mesmeric grip on the governments of Britain and America. His deeds lie behind half the world’s headlines. British policy seems obsessed with one word: terrorism. The West is equivocating, writhing, slithering in precisely the direction most desired by its enemy. He must be roaring with delight.

On any objective measure, terrorism in the West is a trivial crime. True, New York and London saw outrages in 2001 and 2005 respectively. Both were the outcome of sloppy intelligence. Neither has been repeated, though of course they may be. Policing has improved and probably averted other attacks. But incidents genuinely attributable to Al-Qaeda rather than domestic grievances are comparable to the IRA and pro-Palestinian campaigns. Vigilance is important but only those with money in security have an interest in presenting Bin Laden as a cosmic threat.

If the warrior is defined by his opponents then we have truly elevated Bin Laden to superpower status. He is one broken man, hiding in the caves of Afghanistan and yet he is the boogie man under all of our beds. He costs my country trillions of dollars. He has damaged our personal freedoms and stolen our sense of liberty. He did not do this alone he had an assistant, George W. Bush.

Yes our great anti-terrorism president has performed magnificently in the thrall of Osama. He has panicked and encourged us to panic to the point where many Americans are willing to sacrifice the very thing that makes us America. Our freedom.

A stronger man would have swatted Bin Laden like a common pest. But our fearful leader has helped to create a monster. And now even the might of the world's most powerful military has been unable to bring this creature down.

And now even as Osama's health fails, his power grows until he may soon be unstoppable. And after he gives thanks to Allah I am confident that he will give a little thanks to our very own President Bush. He could not have done it without him.