It's sad, but true. We live in a world where even elementary school kids understand and resonate with battle-ground analogies.

In a conflict where sudden skirmishes, guerilla tactics, sneak attacks, and suicide bombers are the battlefield, there's no advancing front to keep our eye upon. The battles are all around us: whether we're a soldier in Afghanistan or Iran, a train-traveler in Spain, or an office worker in New York. Those ulcer-inducing, color-coded alert status warnings are the Department of Homeland Security's reminder to all of us, everywhere, all the time, to . . . watch your back.

Wouldn't it be a relief to know that despite the threats swarming around us . . .

the threat of terrorism;
the threat of violence;
the threat of indebtedness;
the threat of immorality;
the threat …