Note from author: The contents of this column are in no way intended to diminish the horror of the human tragedy that occurred Tuesday nor are they an endorsement or encouragement of any similar actions taken by any party for any reason.

“This is the second Pearl Harbor.”

— Senator Chuck Hagel, (R-Nebraska)

There could be little about this event further from the truth. What happened Tuesday is certainly far from what happened on December 7, 1941. There is no tangible enemy. There was no insignia on the planes that brought havoc aside from those we accept as symbols of our nation’s transportation infrastructure. There is no swift declaration of war. There was not a military target or a strategic military objective, but instead there stood a psychological objective, and the target was civilian as well as military. The attack on Pearl Harbor was something that set resolve in the hearts of America, whereas this attack has resolved only our confusion and search for any kind of answers as to the details of the attack.

Terrorism is designed to do exactly what its name implies: it exists to spread fear. Tuesday’s attack was more symbolic than to severely cripple the nation’s economy or leadership. Even the seeming illogical nature of terrorist suicide attacks does not infer lunacy to the point that anyone would believe that a single event of this magnitude would cripple such a large and expansive nation with the resources the United States possesses.

The attack was for the majority a success by its perpetrators. While only three of the intended four targets were hit, considering the effects, they certainly did not fail. Militarily one must for an instant understand that the mastermind behind such an event, whether it be Osama bin Laden or some other figure, was brilliant in his organization and planning. To simultaneously hijack four commercial airliners in a nation with relatively high airport and airline security successfully and to have three of the targets be hit as effectively as they were

in promoting chaos is not an easy thing. To keep it secret is just as impressive.

Having said this, I am not saying it was right or even warranted. Nonetheless, America has been awakened to a frightening reality: We are no longer the safe haven from international terrorism we once believed we were. We must try to gain perspective of what has happened. We have joined the ranks of the rest of the world in experiencing the horror of a large scale terrorist attack, and we must understand that we are not the only Western nation to endure such hardships. Many European nations have been the target of foreign terrorist organizations, from Italy to Scotland to Scandinavia. Now is the time when we must come to an understanding that this kind of thing is no longer a possible threat in the future, but a horrific reality that we must endure and cope with.

We must also find some kind of logical and more permanent solution to ward off such attacks in the future. While the general public and media seem quick to jump at national security and espionage as the failure that allowed such a series of events to take place, I believe its target and proposed solutions to be misguided. Calling for more measures to restrict personal

freedoms and in to essence lock down our public transportation in order to “prevent another incident” will not work. Curbing personal freedoms and privacy is counterproductive to proving the fact that what most people believe this nation stands for will prevail. If any shred of freedom, liberty and justice is to prevail, it cannot be done so through increasing restrictions on either foreigners in the U.S. or the lives of American citizens.

Yet the question still remains as to what the nation should do in response to such an action. There will undoubtedly be some kind of military action because of the fact that the leadership of this nation believes that is what “bring to justice” means. There will also probably be a rush for more military spending and heightened security everywhere for everything, but once again that will not be the proper course of action.

The manner in which this terrorist attack took place was one where little could have been done to prevent it. Because of its organization and the nature of the attack in using civilian planes, it is difficult to imagine that with the amount of air travel that occurs nationally each day and the number of travelers that go through national airports daily, an event like this could have realistically been prevented. Furthermore, as long as there exists those individuals whose lives and the lives of others mean nothing and they are willing to pay that price for a cause or individual, events like this will still occur. As long as there exists deeply rooted hatred between people of different nations and religions, events like this will continue to happen here and abroad. So how does one stop it?

Perhaps if we took a more proactive approach to making real headway in the way our social and economic systems treat the people of other nations, we could begin to quell the hatred for this country. Perhaps if we truly desired peace we could work for it in a productive manner one step at a time. Maybe we will one day, but I don’t think it will be soon. Yet I still remain hopeful and this event has strengthened my resolve that one day our children and their children can learn about the terrorism in school and see the pictures in the history books, and never truly understand firsthand what it really is.