On the 12th anniversary of Sept. 11 - are we a better country now?

[Baz]

Was just watching the news and some coverage of the anniversary of Sept. 11 a speaker commented that we are now a better country because of the events....I didn't understand what he meant.

Are we a better country now because of the events of Sept. 11?

[widgeon13]

I don't see how we are better off for the lose of 3000 souls for no reason. 9/11 is one of the saddest, darkest days in our history and for that matter the history of the world.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Nope. 9/11 united us. Everything that's happened since (including attempts to politicize and exploit 9/11 for political gain) have divided us. We're also more economically vulnerable. Al Qaeda won on that front - attacking our economy. They knew it was already weak and propped up by smoke-and-mirrors games, fuzzy accounting, manipulated mortgage-backed securities and foreign labor. Nothing has changed, in fact it seems to have gotten worse.

[dewolf]

The entire world is a lesser place because of it. Shame it has'nt opened the eyes of some to the inflitration of Islam into Western society and how it will change all of us in the not to distant future if it has'nt already.

[widgeon13]

Originally Posted by Porsche-O-Phile

Nope. 9/11 united us. Everything that's happened since (including attempts to politicize and exploit 9/11 for political gain) have divided us. We're also more economically vulnerable. Al Qaeda won on that front - attacking our economy. They knew it was already weak and propped up by smoke-and-mirrors games, fuzzy accounting, manipulated mortgage-backed securities and foreign labor. Nothing has changed, in fact it seems to have gotten worse.

P-O-P - I certainly support your "red" statement on the bottom of your posts.

[cashflyer]

Rights have been trampled in the name of "security".

I've been hearing for several days now, and in a speech last night, the excuses for another president to entangle us in yet another Middle Eastern conflict.

I would say no, that we are no better off.
Perhaps worse off.

[berettafan]

Originally Posted by dewolf

The entire world is a lesser place because of it. Shame it has'nt opened the eyes of some to the inflitration of Islam into Western society and how it will change all of us in the not to distant future if it has'nt already.

It has done the opposite. We are beginning to see the cancerous creep of this particularly disgusting fanatical nonsense into our nation and it won't stop.

We'll start seeing more articles like this one that seek to mainstream and marginalize the horrors that take place:

Jihadist doesn't equal psychopath: Column

We mock Christians for their faith claiming they are nuts with no ability to reason then we defend islam as some sort of hipster inner peace religion. The libs who do this are simply acting out of a need to be contrary yet the real Islamic nutjobs who see murder as a reasonable action are using this conversion of our nation from a land of stand up call it like it is badasses who fought WWII into a nation of 'it's all good' pussies to sneak in and wrap their ugly tentacles around us.

Islam is a cancer of the mind and it will destroy our country with all the troubles that come with it. We are seeing it make inroads now as we have a pansy assed no balls president who thinks islam is some enlightened way of life.

Until the majority in this nation can understand that religion (and by religion I don't mean God) is a method of controlling human behavior and as such Christianity has clearly demonstrated itself as beneficial in our country while other countries in the Islamic world have very clearly demonstrated the failure of that particular set of stories to bring any value to human life....until then we will continue to slide downhill.

No, the liberal minded people in this country have two faults that will contribute to the decline of our society. Firstly they fail to see that their leaders are every bit as corrupt as republican leaders and are even more racist than any republican every dreamed of being. Secondly they are stuck on the chant of 'religion is for people who can't reason' issue. Sociological autism. Perhaps that's the term for what ails these people.

[Tervuren]

There was a temporary good effect that people all over the country realized how frail we are, and started living more responsibly. This resulted in an economic cool down as people started trying to pay off debt, instead of free spending. This looked bad to the presidency, so he told us all to go to Disneyworld, spend money, blah blah blah.

For our two top presidential choices, to be Romney, and Obama, and people voting primarily on which one offers them more handouts, I'd say we're right back to where we were, or worse. We've forgotten our frailty.

[Danimal16]

It is as if we made progress, squandered it, and . . . . well repeat. The war is not over.

I know this is a hot bed topic, but the western world, Judaism and particularly Christianity are organizations where membership is voluntary. Islam on the other hand is not.

[GH85Carrera]

To answer the question. No

Everyone came together for a short while. Then things went back to normal only now we have the new VERY expensive useless federal department waste of time an money TSA.

[URY914]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

To answer the question. No

Everyone came together for a short while. Then things went back to normal only now we have the new VERY expensive useless federal department waste of time an money TSA.

^ Agree. Heard a terrorist/security expert today on BBC radio. He said getting killed by a terrorist has a likelihood of 1:3.5 million. He said the amount that is being spent it is a waste of money.

[jyl]

9/11 launched an intense national security effort. Our intelligence and capabilities against terrorist threats (domestic and foreign) is much better than it was. It is not accidental that AQ has failed to mount a worthy followup to 9/11.

9/11 was also used as a reason to send us into Iraq and Afghanistan. The total cost of those wars is roughly $4 trillion (estimates vary of course). Since we did not increase taxes to pay for those wars, this was all deficit spending. Adding $4 trillion to the national debt has been quite a negative result.

So, some puts and takes here.

[BlueSkyJaunte]

I think we're awesome now, because of the Patriot Act.

[pavulon]

OBL and several associates have turned to fertilizer. After that, few if any upsides.

[Baz]

As far as I'm concerned......there should be repeated coverage of the Sept. 11 attack each and every nightly news broadcast to assist Americans in remembering how vulnerable we were and still are to evil forces outside as well as inside our country.

The media enjoys broadcasting carnage....so they would benefit as well.

I realize the clueless will always be "the clueless"....but there are some folks who can be reached....and reminded.....if anything good can come from such a horrible and cowardly attack....that's the only way I see it happening.

[vash]

i predict this thread will illustrate how we have not improved as a country.


i for one refuse to lump all muslims together in the way they feel and think. i think 9-11 closed a few minds.

[Baz]

[Baz]

There are '2 million bikers' headed towards D.C. right now

In what will surely be good news to the city's already-harried commuters, a small army of motorcycles is currently bearing down on the city, intent on spending the day biking through it after being denied a National Park Service permit to assemble on the National Mall. Due to D.C.'s laws governing parades and permits, the bikers' intending 9/11 tribute will go unperturbed by law officials, despite the heinous gridlock it will presumably entail. "What could have been a one or two hour ride through will now likely be an all day event," the event organizers said on Facebook. The event is generally being seen as a response to the now-renamed "Million American March against Fear" (It had previously been known as the "Million Muslim March," which is a protest against government surveillance and "alleged post-9/11 authoritarianism" taking place on the National Mall, according to US News. We just hope everything goes smoothly for all parties, permit or not.

[techweenie]

Originally Posted by jyl

9/11 launched an intense national security effort. Our intelligence and capabilities against terrorist threats (domestic and foreign) is much better than it was. It is not accidental that AQ has failed to mount a worthy followup to 9/11.

9/11 was also used as a reason to send us into Iraq and Afghanistan. The total cost of those wars is roughly $4 trillion (estimates vary of course). Since we did not increase taxes to pay for those wars, this was all deficit spending. Adding $4 trillion to the national debt has been quite a negative result.

So, some puts and takes here.

9/11/01 removed 3977 souls and about $3.5 trillion from our economy. Then we piled on debt and sacrificed 5000 or so Americans in Iraq and another 2000 in Afghanistan and have over 25000 badly wounded. None of this has made us better off.

Add to that the impingement on our privacy via 'causeless searches,' surveillance and abandonment of many key judicial principles the Founders provided us with, and I'd say we are far worse off now, despite having a far more competent administration than we had in '01.

[jyl]

Let's not forget to whine about the huge "inconvenience" of all that "pointless" airport security while we're "remembering" 9/11.