and to screw americans into the ceiling about a threat that's comparable to pre--9/11, i don't buy it. we ought to be concerned but don't overreact. >> you hear president obama saying al qaeda is on its heels. i think that's the quote. do you believe that's still the case? is one interpretation, that peter -- one idea that peter forwarded, is that this is a sign of desperation on the part of al qaeda central, trying to tell al qaeda in the arabian peninsula to do something? is that your read on it? >> my read is that al qaeda is on a long decline, but americans perspective of time is short. we measure time in this country in terms of months, years. al qaeda, when i talked to people debriefing al qaeda detainees, al qaeda talks about time in decades and centuries. the decline is very slow. there will be episodic threats that we're seeing today. we should not confuse that, though, with the resurgence of