What are we doing?
I mean really, the events of September 11th were tragic. But what on earth makes people think that they are important enough to be a target of terrorism? There is an interesting breed of insanity mixed with megalomania running around now, and I find it most distasteful.
Immediately after the attacks, the people here in Canada were terrified to go to work, to fly, to do anything that amounted to being in large groups of people. The question that I have is when did these people suddenly become important enough to be targets of terrorism? Terrorism, by its very name, works by instilling terror into the people. This is more along the lines of advanced paranoid self-delusion ism. To think that there are people out there, like you or I, who think that they could be the next targets of terrorism.
I’m not saying that the people in either Tower or on the planes were not important, nor were they important people. They were unlucky. But you have the same chance of winning the lottery as you do of being a victim of terrorism in North America. But I guess that there are people out there that truly believe they will win the lottery as well. Nevertheless, there are a lot of deluded people out there. I watched in horror on my television that fateful morning, watched as the world that I knew to be a safe one come crashing down on the streets below.
I watched as the whole of human ugliness reared its ugly head to North America, toothless and laughing insanely. And I watched as the vultures, who could never let a bad thing go, tape every single detail of it for us to watch repeatedly, watch as the towers come down, watch as the planes hit the building. All the while, watching, seeing the people on the top of the building embrace each other, kiss, and jump to their deaths. All in full color, hi definition TV.
And yet, how many people watching actually take the time to stop and think that we just witnessed the death of thousands of people. People like you and I. People with families. Smart people. Dumb people. All kinds of people. People who died for a cause about which they knew nothing, or if they did, they probably did not agree with it. People who died trying to save others. From the lowest, scared janitor, to the fire fighter that walked into that building knowing that never again would he see his wife, his kids, the light of day. But TRYING. Trying to save someone, anyone.
And we sat and watched.
Yes, it was a horrible thing to happen. I do not agree with the actions or the politics behind it. Yes, it was a tragedy, and yes, for once during my lifetime, I saw the whole of human goodness rear its head in response. The men and women that walked into those buildings are truly heroes. Heroes in a world in which I thought none were left.
And we sat and watched.
And now, we look to point the finger and say, "it was HIS fault." Osama bin Laden. George W. Bush. All of the people involved are now being criticized for action/inaction as anyone sees fit to call it. We say that Bush was warned, why didn’t he stop it? We say that the CIA was warned, why didn’t they stop it?
Has anyone actually sat down and asked how would they stop it? Think back a long way, to the bombing of Coventry by the Germans. Winston Churchill knew that Coventry was about to be bombed by the Germans, yet he did nothing to stop it because in order to do so he would have to give away the fact that he knew. This is important. Perhaps the US had the knowledge beforehand, but in order to use it, they would have to tip off the enemy as to their source. Or maybe they knew, and could act on it, but didn’t know the particulars.
So what?
At the end of the day, even now, if something like that were to be made to happen by someone, it would still happen. Anyone who tells you otherwise is in the security business, and making a killing. It’s similar to computer hacking. Any security measures that are invented can be circumnavigated. Someone who is determined enough can do almost anything.
So in an effort to combat this problem, we as a civilization have literally tripped over our own heads scrambling to give up our freedoms in order to feel secure. Somewhat like children with guilty consciences we have gone to our parents, the governments, and asked them to ground us so that it doesn’t happen again. We welcome the extra taxes involved in airport tickets, the extra intrusion into our lives by security personnel. Benjamin Franklin once wrote "they that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." I’m willing to bet that he is feeling a little let down right now.
So while I sit in front of my TV listening to the debate about how President Bush should have stopped the attacks and done something, as I listen to all of the extra security measures in place, and as I sit in front of my computer writing this now, I can think of only one thing to say:
If terrorism is built upon making people afraid…
…you’ve let them win.
-Demosthenes