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Sunday, September 11, 2011
Why September 11 is remarkable
Amid the commemoration of the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, I cannot help thinking how successful theses attacks have been. For an organization that wanted the United States to pay for sending troops to Saudi Arabia during the first Gulf war, a relatively little investment paid huge dividends. Indeed the cost of the operation, including training, must have cost only something to be measured in millions of dollars and the lives of 19 volunteers. The return was getting the United States involved in two wars that have costs amounting to trillions, brought the federal government in major financial difficulties, have lead authorities to neglect essential infrastructure investment for a decade, has kept the population in a nevrotic state for a decade, has given us higher oil prices (with revenue going you-know-where) and has lead to major setbacks in civil liberties. And that is just for the United States, as Europe has also been affected. And the costs will continue to mount, as the US is none the wiser and will have to face in addition the costs of care for veterans.
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5 comments:
How true. The terrorists inflicted much more damage to the US by bankrupting the social state then by killing close to 3000 people in the attacks.
If you look at the ratio of initial cost to subsequent cost inflicted, it is up there with Pearl Harbor. For the ratio of initial damage to subsequent damage as well.
You are all a bunch of insensitive people. People died, and you choose to post this when we comemorate the deceased.
It's hard to be very sympathetic after the American invasion and occupation of Iraq... Few Americans seem to be sympathetic to the huge loss of life there.
To the contrary, I think it is very sensitive to think about how Americans have grossly over-reacted, thereby putting many many more people in harm's way.
CNN has a caption on its front page right now that says: "Ten years ago today, America's sense of security was shattered in a series of attacks that tested the will and resolve of the American public." The American public and its government were indeed tested, and they failed. They showed they can easily be manipulated to get dragged into unnecessary wars, and they panic at the slightest hint of "terrorism" in malls and airports.
The terrorists have won, and they never expected it would be so easy.
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