Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D.

To the Editor:

Re “U.S. Drops Plan for a 9/11 Trial in New York City” (front page, Jan. 30):

While the decision to move the trial of the 9/11 plotters from New York to an as yet undisclosed place is welcome, one must still ask: How could such an absurd decision have been made in the first place?

Why the Obama administration disregarded the economic damage that would be inflicted upon a city already reeling from the current financial meltdown is beyond belief—particularly a city still coping with residual psychic wounds resulting from the attacks of that fateful day.

Yes, the administration has reversed a poor decision, but, incredibly, as of only a few days ago the plan was still “a go.” One hopes that this is a sign that President Obama is beginning to listen to people with some common sense instead of only his inner circle.

Steven Morris
East Hampton, N.Y., Jan. 30, 2010