2008 Woodie Awards
No need for more patriotism
Robert Mateja '09
Issue date: 9/19/07 Section: Opinion
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Another 9/11 Patriot Day passed last week. The usual tales surfaced in the media and around our communities: how sinister were the activities of the irrational, inhuman terrorists; how valiant and selfless were the efforts of public safety officials in New York and of the passengers aboard Flight 93; how the populace was shaken to its core with fear and uncertainty; and how the United States in its righteous glory rose up to wage the War on Terrorism. It's all so romantic and compelling, right?
I have to be honest: I'm not very impressed. The idea of 9/11 does not endow me with a patriotic spirit, nor does it cause a surge in the fear of terrorism. Despite what some say, this was far from the worst tragedy to ever befall our nation. For instance, ever heard of that minor Civil War episode: several hundred thousand Americans dead, with the South in economic ruin? Even in terms of terrorism, the same organization attempted to destroy the same target not eight years before 9/11. Muslim extremists have had it in for us for decades; most of their efforts failed and will continue to fail, yet from the way people still talk about 9/11, one might think the Galgamek interstellar empire was invading.
I'm not saying this to be insensitive. I'm saying this because it's important to look at the big picture, and to have an appreciation for history, lest we play into to egocentrism. The world did not change on 9/11; it was the American attitude that changed, and this abrupt realization-made only in the face of sensational media coverage of smoking buildings-speaks to a depressingly disinterested culture.
The only thing that upsets me about 9/11 is the hysteria that followed on our own part. Political opportunism had a field day in the White House as our brilliant head of state led us into two vain wars. Our basic rights and freedoms were curtailed in the highly reactionary PATRIOT Act. Discrimination against Arab-Americans reached new extremes. Oil prices went through the roof. The wealth of the middle and lower classes continues to deteriorate. The national debt is astronomical, and faith and trust in the federal government is now the subject of keen humor. Some of these developments followed directly from 9/11; most are, to one extent or another, the byproduct of a "post-9/11 world," engineered in its entirety, not by the terrorists, but by our own democracy.
I have to be honest: I'm not very impressed. The idea of 9/11 does not endow me with a patriotic spirit, nor does it cause a surge in the fear of terrorism. Despite what some say, this was far from the worst tragedy to ever befall our nation. For instance, ever heard of that minor Civil War episode: several hundred thousand Americans dead, with the South in economic ruin? Even in terms of terrorism, the same organization attempted to destroy the same target not eight years before 9/11. Muslim extremists have had it in for us for decades; most of their efforts failed and will continue to fail, yet from the way people still talk about 9/11, one might think the Galgamek interstellar empire was invading.
I'm not saying this to be insensitive. I'm saying this because it's important to look at the big picture, and to have an appreciation for history, lest we play into to egocentrism. The world did not change on 9/11; it was the American attitude that changed, and this abrupt realization-made only in the face of sensational media coverage of smoking buildings-speaks to a depressingly disinterested culture.
The only thing that upsets me about 9/11 is the hysteria that followed on our own part. Political opportunism had a field day in the White House as our brilliant head of state led us into two vain wars. Our basic rights and freedoms were curtailed in the highly reactionary PATRIOT Act. Discrimination against Arab-Americans reached new extremes. Oil prices went through the roof. The wealth of the middle and lower classes continues to deteriorate. The national debt is astronomical, and faith and trust in the federal government is now the subject of keen humor. Some of these developments followed directly from 9/11; most are, to one extent or another, the byproduct of a "post-9/11 world," engineered in its entirety, not by the terrorists, but by our own democracy.
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