Americas View on 9/11 - Research Paper Example

 America’s View on 9/11 America has always been a superpower. It is the most powerful nation in the world since the end of World War II. Since then America has taken the role of “Big Brother” to its allies, giving assistance to whichever ally country needs it. The country’s military might, known all over the world to be the best, has taken the lead on peacekeeping missions especially in the Middle East where the country has important national interests. With America as the leading nation in efforts of peacekeeping, no person in the country or in the world expects that anybody will dare attack Americans in their homeland, let alone kill thousands in just one morning. The 9/11 attack has affected not only the United States but the world as it instilled fear in the hearts of every individual about terrorist threats and attacks. It also instilled the spirit of resilience, hope, heroism, faith and unity, not only against such threat but to any catastrophe that might happen in the future. Heroism Heroism is a trait and anybody can be a hero in many ways. In cases such as emergencies, catastrophes and tragedies, people’s heroism is exhibited at its best. People voluntarily help in any capacity to lighten the burden of others. With heroism comes courage to act, no matter the cost, sticking their neck out, selflessly being there for others, helping in rescue or giving assistance in terms of food, clothing and medicine to those in need. Defense Secretary Leon Penetta during the 9/11 10th anniversary dubbed the victims’ families as heroes and praised service workers who died while saving the lives of others. He said ‘Eleven years ago on a morning very much like this, terrorists attacked symbols of American strength - our economy and our commerce, our military might and our democracy and took the lives of citizens from more than 90 countries. Today people gather across the United States, around the world to remember the events of 9/11... Coming together as one family we pause to honor and pray those who died.” Recounting the passengers of Flight 93, he lauded the “spirit of selflessness and spirit of determination” by fighting off the terrorists who hijacked the flight, showing “the will of Americans to fight for their country” (Daily Mail, Para 29-32). During the 9/11 tragedy, even ordinary people became heroes, risking their lives to save others, friends, relatives or even strangers. Stories of heroism came out after the attack. Motorman Kevin Harrington was able to evacuate and save over 800 people from the subway system in New York. He closed the train’s emergency brakes by hand and deftly maneuvered the train to safety after the system locked down (Fermino Para. 1). Near Governors Island, Coast Guard Petty Officer Carlos Perez was at the helm of a 41-foot utility boat when United Flight 175, flew directly over him. In the ensuing panic brought about by the dust cloud from the collapse of the Twin Towers, his boat was among the number of boats organized to help evacuate hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers off Manhattan (Braun Para 5-7) Firefighter Tim Brown was near the World Trade Center when the first plane hit. When the second plane crashed into the South Tower, it became clear to him that his country was under attack. He raced to the scene and was “grabbed by a civilian who directed him to an elevator shaft where people were trapped.” There was a fire in the elevator shaft underneath them that threatened to kill everyone aboard (so) he attempted to put the fire out when Mike Lynch, a fellow firefighter, came over and told him, “Timmy, I got it. We’ll get them out.” They found his body in the shaft a few weeks later, but it’s known that he saved at least one person from the elevator. Brown said …“Mayor Giuliani says it was the worst day of his life and also the best day of his life. And, I think that’s right, because there were so many heroic actions by the police officers and firefighters that day” (NY Firefighter Tim Brown Remembers Heroism of Those Lost on 9/11 Para 1). The Tragedy It was an ordinary sunny morning when everyone was just starting their day at the office, school, at home or anywhere they usually spend their mornings. No one knew that it would be the day the whole world will remember for years to come. On that fateful day, in Boston, Washington and Newark airport, American Airlines 11 and United Airlines 175 departed at 0745 and 0800. American Airlines 77 departs at 0750 in Washington and United Airlines 93 departs from Newark at 0800. By 8:46:40 AM and 9:03:11, American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175 crashed into the North and South Towers respectively. At 9:37:46 AM, American Airlines Flight 77 slammed onto the Pentagon and at 10:02:23 AM, the last hijacked flight crashed 20 minutes flying time away from the White House, after brave passengers fought the hijackers (911 Commission 1-10). The attack in New York and Pentagon resulted to the immediate death of 1,402 and 614 individuals in Towers 1 and 2 of the World Trade Center (New York Mag) and another 125 persons in the Pentagon (Goldberg, Papdopoulus, Putney, Berlage and Welch 23). The initial tragedy also resulted to the deaths of an additional 343 New York firemen and paramedics, 60 New York Police Department and Port Authority Officers (New York Mag) and injury to 106 individuals in the Pentagon (Goldberg et al. 24). There was also 268 passengers, crew and terrorists that died in the plane crashes (911 Commission 4-10). The New York Mag in its article 9/11 by the Numbers, reported that the attack resulted that 115 nationalities were killed in the attack on the World Trade Center (WTC); 1,717 families failed to get any remains of their love ones killed in the WTC; 3,051 children lost parents; 1,609 individuals lost spouses; and an estimated 422,000 New Yorkers suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. Economically, New York suffered US$ 105 B economic losses and the closure of the New York Stock Exchange for six days. In New York alone, 1,506,124 Metric Tons of debris was removed from Ground Zero and its immediate vicinities (911 Commission 4-10). Conspiracy Theories After the 9/11 attacks many conspiracy theories came out. Although everybody knows that these were only theories, they were given attention, and perhaps investigated by the authorities. Some of the theories that came out were bizarre, others were alarming enough but we should remember that these were only theories and it is usually the case every time something as tragic as the 9/11 attack happens. Some of the theories that surfaced after the September 11 attack are about insiders in trading being aware of the attack even before it happened, that the Securities and Exchange Commission launched an insider trading investigation in which Osama Bin Laden was a suspect after receiving information from at least one Wall Street Firm; that the Jewish, like the traders knew about the attack because “4,000 Jewish employees took off from work on September 11th 2001”. “NORAD commanded defense systems to ‘Stand-down’, because of their lack of presence during the attacks”; some said that bombs caused the towers to collapse and not the plane and that the damage in pentagon does not fit with the size of the plane, giving doubts as to what really happened in that area (The 11 Most Compelling 9/11 Conspiracy Theories para 2-6, 10). Other theories or controversies also include bizarre stories about flight 93 and its passengers. That allegedly, flight 93 did not crash and was replaced by a different plane. The location of flight 93 and its passengers according to theorists will never be known. Another is that the hijackers are still alive and are hiding in other countries because of the alleged passports that were found undamaged in the crash site. With regards to the phone call made from the plane, theorists say they were faked. The blackbox tapes were kept hidden after sharing them to the families of the victim to cover up the truth, and last but not the least is that theorists believe that the videos of Bin Laden taking full responsibility on the attacks was also fake (para 7-9, 11-12). How the Attack Changed America Jason Villemez and Dalia Mortada reported in the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) that the tragedy has brought a big change in the country as a whole but also to every individual whether he was there or nowhere near the sites of the attack. The government, for its part has instituted changes to ensure the safety of its people. Congress has passed the aviation Security Act, creating the Transportation Security Administration, which in turn implements stricter guideline on passenger and luggage screening. There was also a temporary decrease in the issuance of visas especially to Pakistani, Egyptian and Moroccan Citizens. At present, the issuance of visas has returned to” pre-9/11 levels” (para 1-2, 8). “Deportations as a whole rose by 104 percent from 2001 to 2010, according to data from the Department of Homeland Security. The region with the highest deportation percentage was Central America, with a 430 percent increase, going from 14,452 deportees to 76,603. Asia saw a 34 percent rise in deportations, while Europe rose by 46 percent. Deportations for persons from Egypt, Pakistan and Jordan spiked in 2003, with Egypt showing the highest increase -- 205 percent” (para 10). Villemez and Mortada adds that international tourism to America suffered a decline for three years as did the number of Americans travelling abroad (para 9). Another change according to Jamal Smith has been the increase in exposure of religions and cultures in the country. They had received public recognition after the 9/11 attack, after efforts made” to educate the populace that not all Muslims and non-Caucasian people were terrorists”. He added that “Though it’s taken over a decade, we are now beginning to recognize that we are a multicultural and pluralistic nation” (para 1-4). Americans are now more aware of the dangers that the country is facing which made them more cautious and more on guard. Government security policies and procedures also changed after the 9/11 tragedy, from deterrence to preemption. “Given the potentially catastrophic consequences of terrorist attacks employing weapons of mass destruction (WMD), Administration decision makers felt that the United States could not afford to sit back, wait for attacks to occur, and then respond” (Perl 2). Immediately following the attacks, Congress enacted the USA Patriot Act in October of 2001 and the Homeland Security Act of 2002 in November of the following year. The Patriot Act strengthened the authority of law enforcement agencies “to investigate suspected terrorists, including surveillance procedures such as roving wiretaps; provided for strengthened controls on international money laundering and financing of terrorism; improved measures for strengthening of defenses along the U.S. northern border; and authorized disclosure of foreign intelligence information obtained in criminal investigations to intelligence and national security officials” (Perl 6-10). In that same month of November 2002, PL 107-306 or the Creation of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States or more commonly referred to as the “9/11 Commission” (The 9/11 Commission Report 5-10) was established to investigate the events during 9/11 and to propose subsequent measures to avoid such tragedy from recurring through policy recommendations. Subsequent government and legislative actions following the tragedy also led to the creation of the Department of Homeland Security which coordinated defense and response against terror attacks in the country. The Department also effectively consolidated 22 federal agencies, offices and research agencies including the activation in May 2003 of the National Counter-Terrorism Center (Department of Homeland Security 6-25). The hunt for the perpetrator of the attack, Osama Bin Laden, resulted to a US-led coalition removing the Taliban from power in Afghanistan and the subsequent man-hunt and death of Bin Laden in Pakistan on May 2, 2011, almost a decade after the 9/11 tragedy. President Barack Obama in the National Strategy for Counterterrorism Report (foreword) stated “As we approach the 10th anniversary of… September 11, 2001, it is a time to mark the progress we have made in our war and to rededicate ourselves to the challenges that remain…(and) have significantly strengthened our defenses and built a steadfast international coalition. Despite our successes, we continue to face a significant terrorist threat (and) defeating them requires a strategy that is even more agile and adaptive…And yet today, we can say with growing confidence – that we have put Al Qaeda on the path to defeat. With an unrelenting focus on the task at hand…we will not rest until that job is done” (Obama). Neal Conan of National Public Radio stated that after 9/11, “Americans looked at their role in the world very differently. As a survey released by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs put it, in 2002, Americans were ready to allocate almost unlimited attention and resources to countering the terrorist threat” (Conan). The 9/11 tragedy changed American’s view on the importance of compassion, hope, faith and life itself. President Obama speaking on the 10th anniversary of 9/11 said, “Tragedy has brought us together…This anniversary allows us to renew our faith that even the darkest day gives way to a brighter dawn... Even though we may never be able to fully lift the burden of those left behind, we know somewhere a son is growing up with his father's eyes and a daughter with her mother's smile. No single event can destroy who we are. no act of terrorism can change what we stand for” (Daily Mail Para 24-28) The tragedy served as a wake-up call to all Americans, from the President down to the ordinary individual. Being a superpower does not make America invulnerable to terrorist attacks. The dangers the country faces are no different from the dangers that any other county faces, albeit other reasons. It is up to each and every one of us to be vigilant. The lessons must be heeded to minimize the danger if not totally avoided in the future. Works Cited Braun, David. “Remembering 9/11 Heroes Afloat”. National Geographic. 8 September 2011. Web. 14 December 2012. Conan, Neal. "How 9/11 Changed How Americans View the World." Talk of the Nation. National Public Radio. 10 September 2012. Internet Radio. Web. 14 December 2012 Fermino, Jennifer. “An underground hero on 9/11: subway operator evacuated passengers and maneuvered train to safety after system locked down”. New York Post. September 9. 2011. Web. 14 December 2012. Obama, Barack. National Strategy for Counterterrorism. Washington, DC: Office of the President. June 2011. Web. 14 December 2012 Perl, Raphael F. International Terrorism: Threat, Policy and Response. Congressional Research Service. 3 January 2007. Web. 14 December 2012 Smith, Jamal. “How 9/11 has Culturally Changed America”. 9/11 Memorials. September 11, 2012. Web. 14 December 2012 US Department of Homeland Security. Implementing 9/11 Commission Recommendations – Progress report 2011. Web. 14 December 2012 Villemez, Jason and Mortada, Dalia. “9/11 to Now: Ways We Have Changed”. PBS NewsHour. 14 September 2011. Web. 14 December 2012. 911 Commission. The 9/11 Commission Report. 22 July 2004. Web. 14 December 2012 ___. “NY Firefighter Tim Brown Remembers Heroism of Those Lost on 9/11”. Fox News Insider. September 11, 2011. Web. 14 December 2012. ___. “The 11 Most Compelling 9/11 Conspiracy Theories”. News One for Black America. September 11, 2012. Web. 14 December 2012. ___. “The Pain That Never Dies: 11 Years On, The Heartbroken Fiancee of Firefighter Shows How Raw Grief Still Haunts Victims’ Families”. Mail Online. 11 September 2012. Web. 14 December 2012. Read More