In any event, the very secrecy and controls of Soviet society reduce worries that terrorists could exploit the information there.

But Mr. Ashcroft said the law does not go far enough and "has several weaknesses, which terrorists could exploit undermining our defenses."

But what happened here is not a mystery: terrorists exploited the conventions of an open and free society to commit an act of mass murder.

We have already seen how terrorists can exploit nations afflicted by lawlessness and desperate circumstances.

The commission's contention that "the terrorists exploited deep institutional failings within our government" is overblown.

"Sept. 11th awakened the country to the fact that weak immigration enforcement presents a huge vulnerability that terrorists can exploit."

Finally, terrorists in many countries have seen the value of martyrdom and exploited the death penalty to advance their particular causes.

Some experts worry about unhappy surprises, like terrorists' exploiting the imagery to plan attacks, for example.

The terrorists exploited deep institutional failings within our government.

We are not at war with Islam, even if terrorists exploit Islamic religious fervor.