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At 8:45am, on September 11th, 2001 America’s heart was torn by a hijacked plane crashing through the north tower of the World Trade Center. Eighteen minutes later, a shocked country received a second blow as a second plane tore through the south tower. An estimated 2,819 lives were lost that day. The attack seemed to have come out of nowhere. As a country, we were not properly prepared to defend ourselves. America needs to devote as much money and as many resources as possible to combating terrorism.
It has been argued that if we focus too much on preventing terrorism, we risk ignoring or reducing support for measures designed to reduce other threats to life and health (Source 1). The suggested threats we risk ignoring included heart disease, automobile accidents, and drunk driving. While these are completely valid daily threats, they are also often easily preventable. While there is not much an individual can do to protect themselves from terrorism, they can definitely have a strong influence on preventing the aforementioned. Many of societies concerns can be prevented by the self control of the individual. With the exception of heredity, heart disease may be prevented by eating healthy and exercising. Car accidents can be prevented by being more aware, and focusing on driving instead of text messaging on cell phones at every red light. The American individual needs to be more responsible so that the government can focus on bigger things such as terrorism.
If America had given homeland security as much attention five years ago as it does today, the twin towers may still be standing. The events on September 11th, 2001 should have never happened to a country with as much resource and technology as America. It is difficult to understand why a country that has enough technology to create human body parts from stem cells would not have the technology to prevent a terrorist from boarding and taking over a U.S. airplane.
We made the mistake of not worrying about terrorism enough in the past. Now America needs to learn from that mistake and look towards the future. Many people think that we are spending too much on counter terrorism. Since September 11th, America has spent 18 billion dollars combating terrorism (Source 2). That may sound like a lot, but not when we had a total of $1,946 trillion dollars of expenditures in 2003 alone
On September 11th, 2001, four planes were hijacked, two planes hit the twin towers, one hit the pentagon, and one crash-landed in a field in Pennsylvania. Since then the government has been doing everything it can to help with security at airports, in airplanes, and in everyday life. Even though the government has been trying to increase security, terrorists have still been successful. Since 9/11, the government has taken many steps to increase security and decrease terrorism. However, security has increased, while terrorism has not decreased.
On September 11th of 2001 Islamist terrorists hijacked four planes and drove two of the planes into the World Trade Center buildings, also known as the ‘Twin Towers’. Many lives on this day were lost; 9/11 goes down as one of the most tragic days in American history, but also a day that created many safety changes. As the World Trade Center was being terrorized by two planes, Flight 11 and Flight 175; a third plane was flown into the ‘Pentagon’, Flight 77 as another plane, Flight 93, followed crashing into the field of the Pentagon. America decided to take action for society’s safety and create many organizations and laws that would be endeavoring to protect all.
The worst terrorist attack in U.S history occurred on September 11, 2001. According to U.S government officials, nineteen men hijacked four fuel-loaded commercial planes with the intent to destroy the World Trade Center in New York City, as well as both the Pentagon and the White House in Washington D.C. The attacks began at 8:46am ET when American Airline’s Flight 11 struck the North tower of the World Trade Center, causing chaos on the streets below. Not even twenty minutes later, another commercial plane, United Airlines Flight 175, struck the south tower. Americans and people all over the world watched helplessly as the action on the East Coast unfolded. Any American old enough to remember can most likely tell you exactly where he or she was at the moment of the attacks. Whether we watched the terror in New York City on a television screen or experienced it first-hand, the sight of the initial impact of the planes on the World Trade Center, of bodies falling from the highest floors of the towers, and of chaos on the streets is truly unforgettable. Following the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City, a third plane, American Airline’s Flight 77, hit the side of the Pentagon building in Washington D.C. Citizens of Washington were shocked, knowing that the terror unfolding in New York was not the only matter of worry. While our nation’s capital dealt with a crisis in its own city, the trouble in New York City was still at large. At 9:59am ET, the south tower of the World Trade Center collapsed, creating a cloud of debris large enough to cover the entire city. The north tower followed suite around thirty minutes later, but before that, it was reported that a fourth plane, United Airlines Flight 93, had crashed in a fie...
It has been 3 years since the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center Towers on September 11, 2001. After two commercial airplanes were hijacked by members of the Al-Qaeda, both planes plundered through the towers, leaving nothing but the remains of the collapsed towers. Devastated by the thousands and maybe millions of people that were killed, America was under attack by terrorists.
Every day millions of people put their trust in those around them. When the passengers boarded the flights on September 11th, 2001, they put their trust in the planes, the pilots, and the other passengers. On this devastating day about 3,000 people lost their lives. One of America’s only terrorist attacks on US soil, the attacks on 9/11 affected the United States by killing many people in Manhattan and Washington D.C., sending its economy into deficit, and sparking a war in Afghanistan.
September 11, 2001 marked one of the most tragic events in United States history. As a way to assure the safety and wellbeing of U.S. citizens shortly after being attacked by al-Qaeda, President Bush stated, “Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America. These acts may shatter steel, but they cannot dent the steel of American resolve”. Although President Bush was seen a source of security during a time of need, many citizens felt that his words were not genuine and part of a dramatic story the government wanted its people to believe. Despite the side taken, both perspectives of the argument can agree that the U.S. was attacked by a series of coordinated suicide attacks by al-Qaeda. On that Tuesday morning, 19 terrorists hijacked four commercial passenger jet airliners. The hijackers intentionally crashed two of the airliners into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, one into the Pentagon, and the fourth into a field in rural Pennsylvania after passengers fought back against the terrorist to try and regain control of the plane. This is the story the government wants its people to believe. However, the truths about the attacks on 9/11 are much more frightening. On September 11th, 2001, the United States government betrayed its citizens by allowing the destructive attacks on the Twin Towers, WTC-7, the Pentagon, and Shanksville.
“Hey mom, look how low that plane is flying!”. “Oh my, that is dangerously close! Wait, that can’t be right. Why is it flying so low... and fast? Something must be wrong! Oh my God! It looks like it's about to crash into th…”. Ever wondered what the sound of anguish was like? If you were walking the streets of downtown New York City on September 11th, 2001, then you heard the sound of the desolation of a nation. On that day of despair, the US went through a series of four coordinated terrorist attacks by 19 members of the Islamic terrorist group Al-Qaeda (9/11 Attacks). Over 3,000 civilians were killed as a result from two hijacked planes flying into the World Trade Center in NYC, and another hijacked plane flying into the Pentagon in Washington D.C. (9/11 Attacks).
America has had 21 terrorist attacks, from 2000 to 2009 consisting mostly of al-Qaeda and suicide bombers (infoplease.com). Osama Ben Laden, leading al-Qaeda’s attacks is fed up with the way America treats the world. Blaming America for global warming and determined to stop them by sending suicide bombers and hijacking planes. After the 9/11 attack America changed the way they looked at security, putting into effect; Airport Security Federalization Act of 2001: To deter and punish terrorist acts in the United States and around the world, to enhance law enforcement investigatory tools (The Library of Congress).
On September 11, 2001 New York came upon a terrorist attack. The terrorist hijacked four airplanes the morning of the attack. The attack was part of the Al-Qaeda Islamist group, led by Osama Bin Laden. Two planes collided into the World Trade Center; one hit the Pentagon, and the other one crashed in Pennsylvania never reaching its destination. The cause of 9/11 is that Islam saw the United States as a heinous country with different and awful morals so they decided to attack. The consequences were the tensions between Americans and Muslims rose. Numerous hate crimes were committed and there was a massive economic downfall. We could have avoided this incident if the airport security would have been more strict, then the attack would have a less chance of happening (Bantista). “Make no mistake, the United States will hunt down and punish those responsible for these cowardly acts. Freedom itself was attacked this morning by a faceless coward. And freedom will be defended.” –President Bush directly after the 9/11 attacks (Tsimelkas). The government issued extreme changes in the military system and the surveillance ...
It’s a normal day at work when suddenly there is an explosion, trapping hundreds of people inside collapsing buildings covered in rubble. Coworkers, friends, and family are gone, never to be seen again, lost to senseless acts of terrorism. In 1993, 1998, and 2000, these events came to pass in the form of terrorist bombings on U.S. targets across the globe. The World Trade Center complex was a symbol of wealth and prosperity, but quickly became the target for radical Muslims and was attacked early in 1993. Despite this attack, the American people did not think that the terrorist organization behind the attack, al-Qaeda, was much of a threat, failing to properly respond to the attack and prepare for the future. Five years later and across the globe, another bombing occurred. This attack targeted the U.S. embassies in the African countries of Kenya and Tanzania. Again, the U.S. was distracted from the incident and did not react in a proper manner. Finally, in 2000, the U.S. was again subjected to a terrorist attack, this time on a naval warship docked in Yemen. The country again looked on in horror as the unthinkable happened, leaving people to again question their safety. Although these attacks on American targets were devastating, the United States should have learned from its mistakes to better prepare and defend against the September 11th attacks.
September 11, 2001, began a journey for citizens in the United States. It awakened a fear of being unsafe in our own country by those who chose to commit terrorist acts against us. The threat of terrorism has now slapped the American people into reality along with the leaders of the country to look towards a plan
Americans have considered terrorism as a horror that occurs in other countries and not as a real threat to America itself. As the recent terrorist attacks on our nation shows, this opinion was gravely incorrect. There are several policies in both the private sector and our government, which contributed to our vulnerability to terrorism.
Terrorism will happen again regardless of how prepared the U.S. thinks it may be. This means that it is the country’s job to ensure that there is a continuation of measures that should be taken to fight against terrorism. Others believe that the U.S. is fully prepared for another terrorist attack and that enough has been done. The question at hand is, should the U.S. still be concerned about terrorism. The United States needs to be concerned about terrorism to prevent tragedies like 9/11 from happening again, to address problems with domestic terrorism, and to improve homeland security.
The need to defend nation from terrorist attacks is a daily struggle. We have improved our security in airports, public and government building, sporting events and venues were large crowds are present. We have put protective measures in our theaters, schools, and places of worship. It doesn’t seem to be enough to add security personnel, metal detectors and body scanners. Terrorists still find ways to get passed the toughest security measures in place and cause mass casualties and destruction worldwide.
On September 11, 2001, the destruction of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon changed the mindset and the opinion of nearly every American on the one of the most vital issues in the 21st century: terrorism (Hoffman 2). Before one can begin to analyze how the United States should combat such a perverse method of political change, one must first begin to understand what terrorism is, where it is derived from, and why there is terrorism. These issues are essential in America’s analysis of this phenomenon that has revolutionized its foreign policy and changed America’s stance in the world.