http://news.yahoo.com/why-matters-terrorism-083533631--election.html

WHY IT MATTERS: Terrorism
By EILEEN SULLIVAN | Associated Press – 1 hr 14 mins ago

Associated Press/Donna McWilliam, File - FILE - In this Nov. 10, 2009, file photo, a memorial to victims of the Fort Hood shooting is shown before the start of a memorial service, to be attended by President …more

The issue:

Osama bin Laden is dead and there hasn't been a successful attack by al-Qaida-inspired extremists on U.S. soil since the deadly shooting rampage in Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009. But the danger of terrorism remains a reality for Americans, as seen in the attack in Libya in September that killed U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans. The terrorist assault on the 11th anniversary of 9/11 injected the issue of diplomatic security into the presidential campaign and renewed questions about the quality of U.S. intelligence.

Also a reality: the huge expense of homeland security more than a decade after 9/11, the cost to privacy and civil liberties from aggressive surveillance in the U.S. and the toll in innocent lives from U.S. drone attacks that have killed a succession of known and suspected terrorists.

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Where they stand: http://news.yahoo.com/why-matters-terrorism-083533631--election.html