Five years after September 11th, the War on Terror's failings have become farcical and Osama bin Laden seems more like a cultural icon than a public menace. Bush is Wiley Coyote and he can't quite get his Road Runner. We laugh at the late night punchlines, but there is a sinister sadness that we won't ever feel safe again. This is our "new normal."

There is even a new board game which captures our witless pursuit of public enemy number one.

"Where on Earth is Osama bin Laden" is a take off of Where in the World is Carman Sandiego.

The game's rules are fairly straightforward,"if you get a card that mentions finding al-Qaeda members, you'll move forward. If you get a card that talks about invading Iraq, Saddam Hussein, WMDs, or "Mission Accomplished", you'll be going backwards..."

Perhaps even more appropriate would be a a Where's Waldo-type book series for kids... only you have to look for the guy clutching a suitcase nuke.

-- KDR