In between criminal trials and drone strikes lies military detention a critical tool to the war effort, but one that President Obama continues to avoid for political purposes.
Despite non-commitment to the Libya fight on paper, China and Russia have been critical of Washington and Brussels ever since, calling the air strikes unnecessary.
In addition, the NSC's Clarke (who, it must be acknowledged, during his time as its counterterrorism chief - in his words - "failed" to discern and address adequately the menace of WMDs in the form of hijacked planes) was laudably beavering away at another grave danger: the possibility of cyber-strikes aimed at the computers that enable America's critical infrastructure.
Those of you who follow this column are always keen to hear the latest news on the British spaceplane concept, and the most recent development strikes me as being a key moment in what will be a critical few months.