The more relevant question trembling behind these two others isn't pretty, but it's clear as ice: Will ground zero be attacked again?

The answer is just as plain: Bet on it. Peter Bergen, who has studied and written about bin Laden and Al Qaeda for many years -- a fellow at NYU's Center on Law and Security and a lecturer at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government (and a CNN national-security analyst... -- told me, "If you talk about a 2050 timeline, clearly this is going to be -- if not the number-one target -- in the top five. They've attacked it twice -- and it seems a target in perpetuity. Somebody will try something, even if it's some halfhearted attempt by somebody merely inspired by Al Qaeda. I wouldn't work there at all. But that's just my personal feeling." LINK

• Email this page

See all New America articles, appearances & citations from Esquire