By J Robert Smith
- Sept. 11, 2022
- 3-min read
It’s Sunday, September 11, 2022 – that’s 21 years after the horrific events of September 11, 2001. Nearly a generation has passed.
I was watching Fox News coverage this morning of the 9/11 ceremonies at what once was the site of New York’s Twin Towers. That ceremony is always a sobering reminder that there are bad guys in the world who won’t hesitate to kill Americans on our on soil if given the chance. They’ll kill indiscriminately – the old, young, women, babies, handicapped – whomever.
In watching the coverage, I noticed that Fox hosts and commentators described the 9/11 attackers as simply “terrorists.” They expressed the concern that no other terrorists or “militants” (the other word employed) ever again rain destruction on the U.S. It was clear that the Fox crew wasn’t going discuss why the 9/11 attacks happened. They weren’t going to identify the attackers as Islamic or Muslim terrorists.
In fact, the terrorists who engineered and executed the attacks in NYC and DC – and who commandeered Flight 93 that heroic passengers brought down in a farm field near Shanksville, PA – most certainly had religious motivations (albeit fanatical) in doing so. 9/11 was, by these villains’ lights, jihad – an act of war premised and justified by Islam. Saying that, there’s no claim here that most Muslims are fanatically driven, though the 9/11 hijackers (commonly believed to be led by Muhammed Atta) were lauded by radical Muslims overseas).
Why the 9/11 attacks happened matter more than the when, what, and how. If we fail to acknowledge the motivations that Atta and his conspirators had, don’t we risk having other Islamic terrorists attempt the scale of attacks that occurred 21 years ago? That we haven’t experienced any other large-scale attacks is a credit to our vigilance. But, thanks to Joe Biden and the leftists who run his administration, our southern border is now wide-opened. It’s not just poor, migrant farm workers violating our laws entering the U.S. Among them are probably Islamic terrorists – and others willing to do harm to Americans. Being vigilant at airports isn’t enough.
In the immediate aftermath of 9/11 to this day, the notion has been pushed that screening measures at airports and other public transportation hubs had to be applied equally. “Profiling” was deemed discriminatory. So, 75-year-old, blue-eyed, rosy-cheeked grandmas are pulled out line and searched as if they’re likely to blow up a plane. It’s absurdity in the name of equality. Police, TSA, and other security pros know it’s absurd. They know that people matching certain profiles are where Islamic terrorists are to be found. The Israelis have used profiling effectively for decades.
Of course, as the future unfolds, it doesn’t mean that terrorist threats will originate exclusively among Muslim peoples. Terrorism is a means. Radical Muslims don’t own the franchise. Looking ahead, terrorism may come from Mexico, for example. Emboldened drug cartels there are really paramilitary outfits. If drug lords see terrorism as a tool to protect or advance their interests, they’d have no compunction using it.
What about among Russians, as another example? As divisions with the West harden and grow, might we not see “unconventional warfare” originating from Russia? If we do, the focus of our policing and security needs to align with that threat.
We can’t just stop “terrorism,” as if it’s a generic threat to Americans’ welfare and safety. We have to know who is perpetrating terrorist acts and why. Understanding and accepting the root causes of terrorism is critical to preventing it.
