From Priya Pingali: 9/11 Response

I am a senior, concentrating in International Relations and Economics. I decided to take this course because, though I have almost completed all my IR requirements, I still don't feel like I truly have a comprehensive understanding of the field and its history. By the end of the course I am hoping to somewhat be able to tie together everything I have learned from my IR courses in a chronological way, and to be able to link theory with contemporary issues.

My initial reaction to Professor Der Derian's question was yes, we should forget about 9/11. Having experienced the event and its aftermath from Mexico, where I was living at the time, I definitely thought the American media portrayed 9/11 with a clear bias and turned their coverage of it into a Hollywood-style action movie called "The War on Terror", with clear-cut good guys and bad guys. Instead of initiating an open dialogue, the media preferred to manipulate the vulnerable fear many Americans felt after being attacked. The more I thought about it, however, I realised that 9/11 was the turning point when, in my opinion, Americans started to sacrifice their democratic rights and beliefs and essentially, allowed their government to grossly abuse the human rights of thousands of non-American citizens.

I think Americans should not forget about 9/11, if this will perpetually remind them from now on about the devastating results their government's actions have had in countries such as Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq (despite my belief that the images the major news corporations have allowed us to see hardly begin to touch upon the multitude and widespread consequences of America's invasions). Not only did the invasion of Iraq (which was defended by the American government as a response to 9/11) destabilise an entire region, kill tens of thousands of innocent civilians and ruin America's reputation as a fair and democratic country, but it also exponentially increased the number of frustrated and helpless young men and women willing to support terror in the name of justice and anti-Americanism. If this constant reminder will impel Americans to think more critically about their government's foreign policies and to be more willing to fiercely oppose irresponsible and unfair policies, I believe they wouldn't have to worry so much (and spend so much) on national security.

Posted by Matrix Admin on September 18, 2007 10:20 AM | Permalink

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