On this two-year anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001, the nation'splans to commemorate the deadliest terrorist attacks on U.S. soilare expected to be relatively subdued with fewer candlelightvigils, shortened television coverage and less talk about thatfateful September morning. Instead of simply remembering the past,more of us on this day will be asking ourselves what has changedsince then and preparing for the likelihood of whether it couldhappen again.
"I don't think, as Americans, there is a whole lot we can do toprevent another terrorist attack," freshman Tyke Chandler said. "Ifsomeone wants to do it, then they're going to do it. How are wesupposed to stop them?"
In the weeks leading up to today's anniversary, ongoing pollsconducted by the media reveal that Americans continue to worryabout another 9/11-style terrorist attack. According to a surveyconducted by the Washington, D.C.-based Pew Research Center for thePeople and the Press, nearly 75 percent of people polled expectongoing terrorist acts to occur, with 58 percent worried that suchan attack will take place soon.
"It's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when," said BillGosnell, director for the county's emergency management office. "Ihave no doubt in my mind they are going to try and attack us againas hard and heavy as they can. All they're looking for is thatchance."
For those Americans who once thought of September as the time ofyear when school resumes and fall begins, the terrorist attacks of2001 have given the month new meaning.
"People are going to treat 9/11 differently from now on,"sophomore Nathan Jones said. "The day is going to be treated withmore remembrance for what happened because it's a part of historynow."
Others, like senior Chris Moody, argue the memory is alreadybeginning to fade.
"In a society like ours, where we're driven by the media andwhat's flashy or disturbing in the news, it's like, if it's not infront of our faces all the time ... we start to forget," Moodysaid. "And I think we're already starting to see that happen."
Senior Sarah DeLaCruz said she wishes Americans would wake up tothe rest of the world and realize that horrible things like theSept. 11 terrorist attacks happen every day outside the UnitedStates.
"I think people remember 9/11 because it's the thing to do," sheexplained. "But I grow critical of how the U.S. has this terroristattack, and all of a sudden we need to glorify it. There are peoplewho live with this kind of fear every day, and so I think we tendto overdo it here in the states a bit."
Feeling the effects
Outside people's fears that another attack could fast beapproaching, the questions of 'What has changed since 9/11?' and'What's next for the U.S.?' linger in the back of many peoples'minds.
"We've seen security change an extreme amount here locally,specifically within the sheriff's department," said Delaware CountySheriff George Sheridan, Jr. "Since 9/11, we've identified and areactively watching potential targets; we've doubled and tripled ourtraining in the area of mass destruction; and increased ourcritical action [S.W.A.T.] team."
Sheridan said the county is well prepared in the event of aterrorist attack, and that tightening up security issues has been amajor goal of the government at both the local and nationallevels.
"Even here, just because we live in Smalltown, U.S.A., doesn'tmean (Muncie) couldn't be a potential target for something likethat to occur," he said.
Nationally, the Bush Administration has taken huge strides inattempting to rein in security, including the development of theDepartment of Homeland Security in 2002. The massive federal agencyincludes an estimated 170,000 employees with a projected 2004budget of $26.7 billion, according to the department's Website.
"I think the development of the department was a good step, butthe changes this country will have to go through to make itselfmore secure will take years to evolve," Gosnell said.
Among items on Bush's agenda for the department, the Web sitereports that $3.5 billion of the budget will go to the nation'spolice, firefighters and emergency medical teams; $11 billion forborder security; and nearly $6 billion to defend againstbioterrorism.
Part of the budget will also go to the Transportation SecurityAdministration, which is responsible for increasing the number ofrandom examinations conducted at airport security checkpoints.
According to a recent article in USA TODAY, since the TSA tookover aviation security in February 2002, more than 7.5 millionitems that passengers have tried to carry on board have beenconfiscated. Of those items seized: 1,437 guns, 2.3 million knivesand 50,000 box cutters.
Some students, however, say airport security has gone too farsince Sept. 11, 2001.
"The last time I was at the airport, they made me get out of mywheelchair so they could search it," said senior David Pletcher. "Iwas like, 'Are you kidding me?'"
Moody said he was forced to remove his prosthetic leg so thatsecurity could inspect it.
"I mean, what am I going to hide in there?," the senior asked."I found the whole thing pretty intrusive."
Airport security isn't the only aspect of Americans' lives to beaffected. The passage of the Patriot Act in October 2001 haslibrarians across the country wondering about the way that theyshould handle sharing patrons' information with law enforcementagencies without their knowledge.
Arthur Hafner, Dean of University Libraries, said that he hasnot heard of much talk about the act in Muncie, but said the onlyway a Ball State librarian could give a law enforcement agentinformation on a students' searchings or checked out items would beif he or she had a subpoena.
"We are ethically responsible to require that a student'spersonal identification information be kept confidential, butbecause of the terrible tragedy of 9/11, the federal government hasfelt it necessary to instate this act," Hafner said.
The American Library Association reports that the Patriot Actenables the government to search databases, check circulation andinterlibrary loan records, but the American Civil Liberties Unionargues that the act invades patrons' rights to privacy.
Hafner said he believes the act is in the best interest ofAmericans' personal safety.
"As citizens, we've had to give up some of our liberties inorder to have that liberty we call freedom," he said. "We can onlyhope this (the Patriot Act) is one of those necessary actions thatmust be taken to further protect it."
A turning point
Perhaps the most obvious change since Sept. 11, 2001, has beenin the way Americans view the rest of the world.
Since the war on terrorism began two years ago, the Bushadministration has led the country into wars against Afghanistanand now Iraq. Americans who could not have told you who Osama binLaden was prior to the terrorist attacks now recognize his face aswell as his name.
"Sept. 11 clearly changed America's place in the world," saidJoe Losco, chairman of Ball State's political science department."Prior to the election in 2000, Bush said he would not be involvedin nation building, and would go in only where immediateself-interest was involved."
"Now all that's changed, and I think people understand why wehave had to develop a more intense presence overseas."
Pletcher said he believes Bush has twisted the events of Sept.11, 2001, to his political advantage.
"I think the President just keeps bringing it up asjustification for why we went to war with Iraq," he said. "Like, ifwe went to war, an attack like 9/11 wouldn't happen again. But Ineed proof of that, because he can talk all he wants but I'm notseeing anything [weapons of mass destruction] appear."
Losco said the administration faces a critical time ahead, andthat as the war drags on, Bush could be in trouble come electiontime next year.
"He's convinced Americans of a tie between Saddam and al-Qaida,and that's part of what has sustained his approval ratings," hesaid. "But with the war costing so much money and with the economynow floundering, Americans are starting to take a second look andthat's giving the Democrats a chance to stir."
In spite of how the events of Sept. 11, 2001, have altered boththe nation's political and economic landscapes, local religiousleaders say the tragic events of that day may have stirred the mostchanges within ourselves.
"9/11 made a lot of people think about what they believe in andwhat's truly important to them," said Father John Kiefer, pastor atSt. Francis of Assisi University Church. "For most Americans, thatday taught us that we're not as safe as we thought we were and thatthe things we appreciate in life, like family and friends, can comeand go rather quickly."
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