BY THE WAY: PEACE IS AS IMPORTANT AS RIGHT TO BEAR ARMS

We are scared, angry and in need of answers following the worst internal terrorist attack in the history of this country.

The gripping picture of an entire side of the Alfred P. Murrah building blown away as survivors scurried to safety left a telling image of a nation's underbelly left vulnerable to something horrible and ugly. It also left me wondering about the price of freedom for those who simply want to live in peace.

Can we respect the constitutional rights of American citizens and still manage to extinguish would-be terrorist plots on our own soil? Whose rights are we protecting more fervently in our effort to retain such freedom?

The more difficult picture, however, is the one that burns in my mind's eye as the death toll continues to escalate. Timothy VcVeigh reportedly sat stone-faced as he was fed pictures of the destruction he is accused of causing.

Right now he refuses to cooperate. Perhaps he is waiting for authorities to arrest others and then tell his story amid their testimony.

Regardless of who was responsible, how can we feel as though we have control over the these people who would like to inflict this type of destruction on innocent people if we don't limit ways to destroy ourselves?

Swift passage of anti-terrorism legislation is already being discussed by Senate leaders. But that is like calling for a cast after a bone is already broken. Do we have the legal and moral marrow to knit a stronger backbone?

We are still left with the uncertainty of how best to prevent another blow from fracturing the rights of Americans who simply want to live peacefully.

The tragedy that befell hundreds of people and their families in Oklahoma City begs several questions.

Do people, like terrorists, have the right to train in paramilitary operations to the extent that they would one day decide to hatch a plot we would only expect to see on foreign soil?

How much do the FBI and CIA know about these kinds of people? How much power do the FBI and CIA have to keep close tabs on such operations and limit their arsenal?

Obviously there is more than one person responsible for such a crime. We have been assured by the president and attorney general that those responsible will be brought to swift and severe justice.

But what happens to people who are charged with such a crime won't deter others from wanting to do the same thing. Steps have to be taken to make sure they don't get the same chance.

Maybe then a freedom we likely took for granted will be redefined and restored on our own soil.

~Bill Heitland is a staff writer for the Southeast Missourian.