Terrorism

Terrorism

Imagine a clear blue, sunlit morning; the most beautiful day you can recall. Imagine waking up from an amazing dream of a clear horizon. Imagine putting on your new fresh suit, to start your new job. Imagine having that extra hop in your step as you leave your front door, your mind anxiously awaiting the adventure of a new beginning to an amazing day. Then, imagine not getting to where you needed to be. Not because you fell victim to a traffic jam or missed the bus, but because you were a victim of a terrorist act - an innocent victim, whose life was cut short by terrorism. Shattered dreams and lives are just some of the many effects that terrorism can bring about. Just how different is each human than another? Anatomically there are slight variations, but we are all part of the same world. To lash out on other innocent people due to the fact of different beliefs, is almost inhuman. Lack of composure and intelligence is one of the many flaws' terrorists have built within themselves.

Throughout history, there have been many unprecedented terrorist attacks. Each attack is worse than the next. These attacks have been thought about since 431 B.C. when a Greek historian wrote the effectiveness on psychological warfare ("Terrorism"). Most terrorists share the belief that killing, kidnapping, extorting, robbing, and wreaking havoc to terrorize people are legitimate forms of political action. Terrorists are never one-person, a single political regime, nor a particular religion but terrorist attacks can be targeted to such groups ("Terrorism"). The most common attack in the act of terrorism is the suicide attack. The outcome of the war now under way between the Israelis and Palestinians is very important to the security of every American. Palestinians are testing out a whole new form of warfare, using suicide bombers to achieve their political aims. Israelis are terrified. And Palestinians feel a rising sense of empowerment. Palestinians have long had a tactical alternative to suicide: nonviolent resistance (Friedman A6). Palestinians have adopted suicide bombing as a strategic choice, not out of desperation. Two influential U.S. senators expressed their fear that the kind of suicide bombings we've seen in Israel might indeed spread to the United States. They both agree that if these suicide bombings in Israel don't stop soon, they will soon go international. It will turn into a plague (Blitzer).

Suicide attacks, like all other terrorist attacks, are first aimed at giving their perpetrators widespread media coverage, thereby inflating their own image. For this purpose, the terrorist organizations exploit diverse media venues in order to advance their interests (Sowell). Terrorism's function is to instill fear in as many people as possible promoting change. Terrorists use the media to further extend the fear in everyone. "Scaring as many people as possible is the true just in terror" (Sowell). The media spreads confusion that disrupts a whole society. Terrorism is used as a tool of violence to create a climate of fear in a population and thereby bring out a particular political object ("Terrorism"). "The purpose of terrorism is to get the most bang for your buck with such limited resources" (Sowell). The media does the work for terrorists.

There have been many attacks on the United States to this day including the first attack on the World Trade Center, The Oklahoma bombing, and other attacks on U.S. embassies around the world. The deadliest attack ever was the attack on September 11, 2001. This attack consisted of four planes that were hijacked by suicidal terrorists. The terrorists crashed two planes into the World Trade Center, one into each tower. The third plane was crashed into the Pentagon and the forth crashed into a field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. During this attack, 266 people died on the planes and thousands more died in and around the buildings ("Info War"). This, however, was not the first attack on the financial district. On September 20, 1920, an anarchist exploded a horse cart filled with dynamite killing forty and injuring more than three-hundred ("The War on Terrorism"). Then, in February of 1999, the first attack on the World Trade Center occurred, killing only seven people but injuring many more ("Info War").

Terrorist attacks in the United States have been rapidly decreasing since September 11, 2001 because of the cautious measures our government has taken. In 2001, 3,295 people were killed and 2,283 wounded due to terrorist attacks, but in 2002, the number dropped to only 725 dead and 2,013 wounded ("Info War"). Terrorist attacks are not only present in the United States. They are worldwide. There have been numerous attacks on the Philippines, Switzerland, Japan, Italy, and many other countries. Terrorism is an unforgivable and unforgettable act that is unnecessary and causes nothing but pain. In this, there is never any resolution.

Terrorist attacks have many negative consequences. U.S. efforts to suppress the terrorist threat at home and abroad are unsuccessful, as terrorists remain mysterious and the homeland security effort slows down. Additional terrorist actions around the world maintain or increase business and individual concerns over safety.

Meanwhile, the economy continues to struggle, keeping corporations uneasy on a range of fronts. Interest rates remain low, but lending continues to contract. The U.S. economy experiences a third consecutive quarter of negative to no growth and unemployment passes 8.5%. The rest of the developed world enters recession with two consecutive quarters of negative growth. Second and third world economies stagnate as US and European imports from the third world drop dramatically. Global trade decreases by 3% - 5%. Global GDP growth goes to zero. Several countries default on their sovereign debt (Parkinson 43). The main economic and social consequence is that regional trade is preferred over global trade. U.S. multinationals begin to pull out of the most troubled areas and redistribute to more attractive areas. Major capital investment projects are abandoned or delayed. Government spending helps offset corporate investment declines, but at the cost of budget deficits that threaten to cause inflation sooner rather than later (Parkinson 43). There is a marked shift from consumption to savings and investment. Retail investing in equities essentially vanishes. Few people travel, even on business. A sense of "local is best and safest" affects travel, leisure and retail behavior. Energy costs rise as OPEC cuts production. One major U.S. airline goes out of business and the survivors continue to contract (Parkinson 44). Commercial banking,