9/11- Should it Matter?

9/11 - Should it Matter?

 By Bryant Clark


Eleven years ago Muslim extremists hijacked four commuter planes each filled with hundreds of civilians. The extremists then intentionally flew the planes—oh wait…yeah.... We know the story.

After hearing it incessantly for the past eleven years, we’re all very familiar with this narrative. Now of course our attentions were driven away from the subject at times; the iPod was released, Britney Spears had a meltdown, a nation fell in love with heiresses Paris Hilton and Kim Kardashian. We’ve obsessed over kids on Laguna Beach and Jersey Shore, after a needless controversy, Brokeback Mountain taught us that even good ol’ boys can be gay, and thanks to Dave Chappelle, a whole new generation of white kids now know how to properly use the N-word. But really... honesty, how long did it take YOU to get sick of seeing those towers fall? No one is denying that what happened on 9/11 was an atrocity; any intentional killing of innocent civilians is shocking, horrifying, and infuriating. I am not trying to minimize or trivialize the significance of the death, rather, I am challenging what type of significance that day should have on our historical narrative as a nation.

Bombs decimate the ancient capital of Iraq- Baghdad

The attack on the World Trade Center is incredibly significant. So much has occurred in “the wake of 9/11” that it is inarguable to say that the event was not a driving force behind our country’s changing domestic and international policies. But in my opinion, most all of what has happened because of 9/11 was unnecessary. Somehow 9/11 created some sort of magical, indisputable cause for brash action. We have allowed the terrible few hours on the morning of September 11th as justification for seemingly decades of cutthroat foreign and domestic policies. The media and the government tell us that we need to invade countries, suspend our constitutional rights and kill individual people with smart missiles. The fact that all we’ve done as citizens is sit back on our couches and nodding our heads with nothing but 9/11 in mind has become nothing short of ridiculous.

In order to understand my argument we must look back to the complete narrative:


The story begins before September 11, 2001. To say that the United States built some sky scrapers and then some Muslim extremists decided to destroy them for no other reason than our women wear bikinis and because we elect our own government is nothing short of a juvenile and narrow-minded conclusion. The United States’ actions in decades preceding 911—upholding vicious dictators in the middle east and militarily intervening in non-American conflicts, and creating US military bases in the Muslim holy land—have created a severe anti-American sentiment in many parts of the world. Feeling physically and religiously threatened, one group of extremists, lacking the finances and military might to change the trends of United States interventionism, used terrorist tactics to assault the United States.

Their brutal attack resulted in just fewer than 3,000 civilian deaths. In retaliation, the United States invaded Afghanistan declaring a “war on terror.” The war on terror was expanded when shortly thereafter the United States launched a pre-emptive war in Iraq to put down their weapons of mass destruction capabilities and passed legislative acts which suspended certain rights of its citizens in order to prevent future acts of terrorism. Even today, although “combat troops” have left Iraq, the United States remains very present in most all aspects of their governing. In Afghanistan, the United States continues to attempt to construct a national government where there has never effectively been one in place.

So to straighten the facts, 3,000 Americans died, and to fix the situation we marched 9,000 United States and coalition men and women to their deaths. A handful of nationally independent terrorists from several different countries attacked us, and in turn we punished two countries by toppling their systems of government and killing hundreds of thousands of their people. Then we dictated their new form of government.... and expected to win the hearts and minds of the locals? Certainly this did very little to diminish the anti-intervention feelings the middle east had against the United States. If that weren’t enough, foreigners found holes in our daily operations and securities, so we punished our own citizens by taking away their rights against search and seizure, right to fair and speedy trial, and even the right to protest within a certain radius of any person protected by the secret service. All of this for what? Security? Whose security and security from whom? Sure 9/11 deserved some sort of response but I would hope that if nothing else most of us could agree things have gotten at least a little out of hand.

Troops in Afghanistan

Where was I on September 11, 2001? I was in fifth grade. Now, as a senior in undergrad, I have looked back and seen that the vast majority of my politically conscious life has been spent in a “post 9/11 world.” Now, I realize with dismay that a new generation of children are born knowing nothing but a “post 9/11 world,” a world where people live in endless fear of terrorism. Every young person in high school today has learned current events with nothing but 9/11 in mind. It makes me sick to think that children today are learning about the Bill of Rights in its altered state. The young minds of tomorrow are being taught that the huge asterisks following the fourth, fifth and sixth amendments are for their own protection. And again, we all nod our heads and agree. And the amendments to the amendments seem to be less temporary every day. Why? Because these withdrawals of rights, the preemptive wars, and the trillions of dollars spent on are all in the name of fighting an abstract idea: terrorism, something that will never go away no matter how many dollars or lives we throw toward its defeat. And let’s be serious, the more we blow things up, the faster more of the world becomes anti-American. It seems to me the only thing we’re fighting is violent anti-Americanism. The Neo-cons and at this point the Neo-liberals tell us the best way to combat violent anti-Americanism is through more violence bought with borrowed dollars and by instituting even more restrictions and interventionist policies. I wholeheartedly disagree.

I’m not any kind of 9/11 conspiracy guy but those people raise a very important point: so much has been done in reaction to 9/11 but the event itself, we know very little about. There are questions which have never been answered such as, why was it that President Bush and Vice President Cheney agreed to testify in front of the 9/11 commission, but only under the stipulation that they testified without being under oath and that they would not be asked any questions? Why did NORAD, after a 100% success rating in over 600 aircraft interceptions totally miss four passenger planes on the same day?” These questions, in my opinion, are not radical or complex questions. Yet they are questions that remain unanswered.

Do these answers matter? I think so. Why? Because perhaps our systems of security were in fact competent. They tell us that the country with the most broad and advanced systems of reconnaissance were not good enough. What if enough people just made mistakes to let this happen. Condoleeza Rice sent a memo to President Bush saying there was evidence that Osama Bin Ladin plotted to fly passenger planes into US buildings. Apparently this memo was overlooked and NORAD was never notified of the threat. Obviously 9/11 happened and “what if” history can be misguided but if 9/11 could have been avoided simply by people doing their job correctly, all happening in response to it would be needless.

What is disturbing to me is that this type of thinking is to so many people in this country un-American, un-patriotic or even treasonous. Even now, at least half of you reading this article have, in all likelihood, already dismissed it as anti-American rhetoric. Others may have stopped reading the article all together. Those types of people are part of the problem.

Why is it that asking critical questions about 9/11 is like challenging the Pope to his face or sticking your tongue out at the Queen of England? So if you are not head nodding at CNN you’re a traitor? Being critical of US policy is an inherent part of how our country functions. I say we are long overdue for a critical analysis of the US reactionary politics and foreign policy regarding 9/11. I would hope that for my generation, who never knew the mindless head nodding of the Cold War could come to realize that 9/11 should not have been as significant as it has been. Post 9/11 politics are needless now more than ever. Over 100,000 people have unfairly been killed in drunk driving accidents in the past 11 years and yet there is no push for a mass political reaction in the form of a second prohibition.

Somehow after a bitter war with Japan, after nuking civilian cities killing 200,000 in moments, we were able to reconcile and eventually become allies. From a humanist perspective it sounds harsh but in all these issues, 9/11 included, one fact remains the same: Reaction is necessary but not one which is overzealous. Shit happens. You move on.

They say, “9/11—never forget.” Never forget what? The innocents that died? Maybe. To me, thinking back on 9/11 is about more than that. It’s about remembering how much a few hours can change the world so negatively for decades to come, and how idle head nodding does very few much good. We blow the world up and we act surprised when the world reacts negatively or violently. You know what I say? It’s the chickens coming home to roost. You can’t kick a puppy over and over and expect it not to bite. We are not God’s chosen nation. Stop the head nodding kids, it’s time to wake up from the American Dream.