Eight years later, effects of Sept. 11 linger

Friday marked the eighth anniversary of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 that claimed the lives of nearly 3000 Americans. In the years since those attacks, the fear of terrorism has largely given way to worries about the economy and health care.

But that’s not to say Americans have forgotten.

In a moment free of politics, President Obama addressed the nation on the anniversary. “Every year on this day, we are all New Yorkers,” he said. “We will never forget the images of planes vanishing into buildings . . .We will never forget the rage and aching sadness we felt.”

The president’s sentiment was matched closer to home.

“All tragedy can birth hope for the nation,” said Kara Palmer, a sophomore biology major from Elk Springs, Minn. “[The attacks] united our nation in ways that are unbelievable.”

Jon Buchanan, a senior biology major from Carthage, Miss., agrees. “In the blink of an eye, an entire nation came together in mourning and built a new foundation for the future identity of the U.S.,” he said. “It was a turning point in the development of the American people.”

The subject of the 9/11 attacks is always paired with the subject of the American response, a near-immediate invasion of Afghanistan and the subsequent dismantling of the Taliban regime. The $228 billion conflict continues today.

A recent Rasmussen poll showed 42 percent of Americans believe that radical terrorist activity would skyrocket if the United States were to withdraw from the Middle East.

“My greatest responsibility is the security of the American people,” Obama said during his address. “It is the first thing I think about when I wake up in the morning. It’s the last thing I think about when I go to sleep at night.”

Obama fulfilled a campaign promise to increase troop levels in Afghanistan early in his presidency.

Americans have proven to be sharply divided over the country’s continued military presence in the Middle East. Nathan Freeman, a sophomore biochemistry major, initially believed that American intervention overseas would have positive effects, but has changed his mind in the latter years of the conflict.

“They went about it all wrong,” said the Pearl native. “The mission’s at a dead end; we should not be there.”

Palmer believes the continuing occupation and the 9/11 attacks are unrelated. “We are not just seeking revenge for our skyscrapers . . .We are trying establish a secure nation for the people we promised to defend.”

The same Rasmussen poll showed that 59 percent of Americans believe the country has changed for the worse since the attacks. Heather Murray, a junior anthropology major from Flowood, laments the disappearance of the American unification in the wake of 9/11.

“I wish we could’ve maintained it,” she said. “We’ve resorted now to partisanship and fear-mongering. We’ve let ourselves be manipulated by fear.”