A media cliche repeated time and again is that "the world changed on September 11." That is inaccurate. The world did not change in that dramatic of a fashion. America's perceptions of it did. America, as a whole, has not changed greatly either.
What took place in New York City and in Washington, D.C., represented no less than the purest manifestation of evil. For those who believe in God and Satan, it gave them an example of the devil's handiwork. For those who believed in neither, it showed the darkest side of humanity possible.
This kind of evil has appeared on this planet in numerous forms and in other lands. Most people, for good reason, point to the Holocaust as the most obvious prior manifestation of devilish work. Just within the last few years, however, one could look at other countries -- the mass murders in Rwanda and the "ethnic cleansing" of Yugoslavia -- to realize that evil functions quite well in the current world. America, for a variety of reasons, has avoided these problems. People who did not want to see the horrors of other countries only needed to change their channel away from CNN. Within five minutes, Wolf Blitzer would change the topic and discuss whether to ban offensive record lyrics.
This isolation, however, ended on September 11. In this case, the evil visited an American city -- a major American city. It attacked a major architectural landmark in a manner most people had never really considered. It conquered an inert structure and over 3,000 individuals who never lifted a weapon or pledged to fight any battle.
No matter what some folks may have wished to do, they could not simply walk away or ignore it.
They had to watch the Twin Towers collapse, because it was the only thing on any media outlet. They had to experience the extreme helplessness and suffering that accompanies watching thousands of lives disappear. The terrorist attacks brought to the forefront an example of the potential destruction arising from the evil in the world. In so doing, Americans had to decide what to do in a situation where people were not using God's name in vain but were sincerely at a loss.
Of course, America initially entered a state of mourning. But even in the midst of that state, the most fascinating thing happened: People tried to do something. Folks associated with rescue teams and special response units hurried to New York to help.
For non-experts, the paradigmatic example of helping was the bake sale. Civic groups, towns, local fire departments, high school booster clubs and neighborhood associations all held a variety of small fundraising events to help somebody affiliated with September 11. Even American actors and musical celebrities conducted a hastily-arranged telethon. The kinds of things people did, remarkably, were not that remarkable. They tried to integrate the things that reflected their talents into helping those affected by the attacks. They behaved almost as if a neighbor had died or a relative had cancer. In this case, the neighbor was a major American city and its people.
Empty rhetoric did not drive Americans to rally behind the image of Todd Beamer. This was a man who willingly risked (and encountered) death to protect hundreds and thousands of others. When faced with a challenge, he took decisive, focused and selfless action. Without a doubt, the lucky individuals who did not face this challenge wanted to believe that they would have behaved in a similar manner if faced with a similar situation.
Americans' passions have largely cooled in the year following the attacks. Their resolve for action, however, has not dissipated. Citizens are aware that terrorists can do great damage to our people and our lands. They understand that, as in the Twin Towers tragedy, most of the attacks are preventable. This does not mean all attacks can be prevented. People, though, seem quite willing to deal with hassles -- like going through long lines in airports -- and to help whenever they can -- like the passengers who worked to subdue the "shoe bomber" on another flight. Not every bad act will be prevented, but maybe some of them will.
This does not mean that the country is united behind any particular course of action. Rather, in classic American style, we are engaged in debates about the proper military approach to take. The debates are raging in classic political style, with both parties using the issue somewhat as a shield. Once the dust settles and the political process reaches a decision, the country will unite behind that choice.
The September 11 attacks functioned to focus America's resolve to take action to prevent future acts of terror. It may have been designed to cause chaos and confusion, but it has failed. The American political system is stronger and functioning in a wonderfully characteristic (and slightly inefficient) manner. The American people are saddened, but not incapacitated. The country is, in effect, very similar to its pre-September 11 version. That, ultimately, is a wonderful thing.
(Seth Wood's column appears Wednesdays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at
swood@cavalierdaily.com.)
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