[Gaffer]

...We wait a interminable month and a half to strike back at the enemy in Afghanistan. We sit 5 years later and the WTC's haven't been replaced. In WWII we had all but one of those sunken battleships back in action promptly.

If I remember correctly, the US was getting its but kicked across the Pacific for several months in the early days of WWII, so a month and a half isn't an outrage to me.

As for rebuilding of the WTC, the complex was a PRIVATE enterprise, and the government(let alone, Bush) really shouldn't be held responisble for not having rebuilt something. You can blame that on the carping whinies up in NY arguing about the "message" the new 'whatever-it-is' should have. One of the reasons the owner's of the landlease haven't rebuilt anything is that they only insured ONE of the buildings (for less payments). If they'd insured both, then they could have started rebuilding right away. Now, they have to seek some outside help. Ergo, the outside carping influence.

[Do not dub me shapka broham]

They wouldn't have rebuilt right away-if for no other reason than the fact that disputes over the memorial and the Freedom Tower, which is supposedly going to be the keystone architectural part of this project-would have remained unresolved.

They've already had to scrap the original plan for the Freedom Tower because of security concerns voiced by the NYPD.

I think entrusting Daniel Liebeskind with this was an atrocious idea, not quite mitigated by the forced Childs-Liebeskind partnership.

I agree with your general point though.

Blaming President Bush for the failures of the LMDC, Larry Silverstein, Governor Pataki, among others, is a bit absurd.