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Is the Nixon Library alerting us to the domestic terror and tyranny aspects of 9/11?

A new exhibit at the Nixon Library inadvertently shows why Americans might be confused about terrorism, about what it is and how to fight it. "The Enemy Within: Terror in America, 1776 to Today," which opened January 27 in Yorba Linda, argues that the attacks of 9/11 were nothing new: "Ever since its founding," the show declares, "the United States has been threatened with attack from domestic terrorists."

That sounded dubious.

The 9/11 terrorists, the exhibit emphasizes, launched their attacks not from abroad but rather from "within our own borders." Other small groups of "fanatical individuals" now "challenge our way of life." The question is posed precisely: "How best to respond to these threats?" The show, organized by the International Spy Museum in Washington, DC, a private institution, seeks to highlight excesses and abuses in past efforts to combat terrorism. It also alerts visitors to the fact that today's threats come not only from Islamic fundamentalists but also from homegrown white men like Timothy McVeigh. So far, so good.

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