In an era now dominated by concern about terrorist threats, it is heartening to hear voices raised about threats to traditional American liberties that come not only from terrorists but from some official responses to terrorist threats. We're pleased to note that the former Republican governor of Virginia is among those who make this concern a central theme.

James S. Gilmore III was among the speakers at a daylong seminar on a wide array of policy challenges at the Rand Corp. in Santa Monica last week, held in part to celebrate its new building. Gov. Gilmore was governor of Virginia from 1998 to 2002. He also chaired the Advisory Panel to Assess Domestic Response Capabilities for Terrorism Involving Weapons of Mass Destruction (also known as the Gilmore Commission) from 1999 through 2003, so his informed concern about terrorism dates from well before the 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States.

The Gilmore Commission recommended the formation of something like the Department of Homeland Security before 9/11, but warned accurately that it would take a long time to put one together and define its role intelligently.

Gov. Gilmore agreed with other panelists - including Rand terrorism experts Brian Jenkins and Bruce Hoffman, along with former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt - that the United States still needs more accurate information about al-Qaida and other jihadist groups and that it's time to emphasize diplomacy, improved intelligence and sophisticated political countermoves in addition to military measures. He was the most insistent, however, that such measures can be done and must be done without further endangering individual liberty.

A key is better communication with the American people. "The message should be: 'The republic will survive,'" he said. "Instead, so far it has been: 'We're all gonna die.'"

Gov. Gilmore did not deny that terrorist threats remain. Emphasizing only the reasons for fear, however, could put at risk the central American value of enhancing liberty and freedom.

In addition to a legacy of privacy and individualism, America also has traditions of managerial expertise and technological smarts. These have been and are essential to America's response to terrorism, but they can be taken to the extreme of wanting to "fix" terrorism no matter the cost.

"Do we really want government to have comprehensive data on our daily lives," Gov. Gilmore asked, "to be patted down when we travel forever, to have cameras on every corner, to have a total information awareness system scrutinize our every move and transaction?"

Total safety is an illusion in an open society. Part of defeating terrorism is maintaining the moral high ground, and we do that by remaining vigilant about personal and civil liberties and privacy even in the face of threats.

"We hear that we have to give up some liberty to have security," said Gov. Gilmore, "but I think it's more important to acknowledge that we may have to give up some of what many call security to maintain our freedom."

We concur.