In announcing his restructuring of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Robert S. Mueller III, its director, stressed the importance of upgrading the FBI's intelligence capabilities by recruiting "the right people with the right experience." If my own experience with the agency is any guide, that should include an urgent recruiting drive for people with the right Arabic language skills.

No need to worry that the FBI you've come to know and love will disappear overnight. Apparently the FBI believes they can "prevent" terrorism just by reading the newspaper.

It will take years of bureaucracy to implement meaningful changes. Unfortunately, we can't afford to wait that long to achieve even limited improvements. What will happen?

People are apparently quite insistent on remaking the FBI in a new image. Will they be content to wait the years it will take for that image to come into focus?