Like all of you, no doubt, I am reflecting on where I was and what I was doing and how I felt when I heard about the events on September 11, 2001.

I was working as a programmer at a Help Desk, south of Bellevue, WA. then and the news went out to look up a certain site on the internet which was showing the results of the first strike on the twin towers in NYC.

I was quick to understand that this meant war. I didn't know at the time who we would go to war with, how foolish our leaders would be in their quick and regretable decisions, but I knew the world had changed irrevocably.

I remember calling my wife and saying as much and how she was upset that I would jump to that conclusion. I wish I had been wrong. I wish our leaders had not thought they could bring Democracy to the Middle East by dropping bombs and landing troups.

Perhaps Afganistan was justified. Iraq has proven to be a huge mistake and yet the architects of this folly have not taken responsibility. Rumsfeldt, in particular, has made the world less safe for Americans and should be resplaced.

My heart goes out to the victims and the families of those killed and injured on that day and those who were killed in Iraq, both Iraqis and Americans and other foreign nationals who were doing their duty.

I believe we could do much better with spending our treasure and lives in building trust and love for America, rather than being remembered for Guantanamo and torture and incarceration without trial.

Perhaps one day Bush and Rumsfeldt and Cheney will have their trial. A War Crimes Against Humanity trial. I am not for terrorism. I am not for violence of any kind. Especially going to war on false pretences and then attempting to justify the war later on by making up other reasons, by re-writing history, to justify the ends.

But this doesn't help the 9-11 victims and their surviving family members. I, as an American opposed to the war in Iraq, would like to say "I'm sorry!" to those victims of every nationality, for the poor leadership shown in fighting the terrorists who perpetrated these events 5 years ago today.

We can do better. I hope we will do better.