Poverty, economic recession, food crisis, and crimes. We have been struggling to solve various problems such as these in the world. A current issue that immediately threatens our lives is terrorism.
One of the most shocking and devastating events in the history was the September 11. Nearly 3,000 innocent people from more than 90 countries were killed (Department of Homeland Security (DHS), 2011 *1). Its memory is still fresh even a decade later, and will not ever fade. After this tragedy, our world has experienced various transitions in terms of government policies, society, and perspectives.
First, many countries have changed their policies and attitudes toward terrorism and terrorists’ activities, and that caused dramatic changes to people. In the United States, the Department of Homeland Security was established in 2002 to “overs[ee] and coordinat[e] a comprehensive national strategy to safeguard the country against terrorism and respond to any future attacks” (DHS, 2011 *2). The department did not exist before the September 11 happened. The department’s budget is $66.3 billion as of 2009, that is 7.3% more than the year of 2008 (DHS, 2011*3). The presence of the department and its huge budget explicitly shows that immense efforts are required to protect this country. The United States is not the only country which took action against terrorism after the incident. Other countries ranging from Japan, China, Tonga to Turkey have launched a war on terror, and have passed and revised laws to combat terrorism. As a consequence, “at least 35,000 people worldwide have been convicted as terrorists in the decade since the Sept. 11 attacks”, Huffington post reported on September 3 (2011). In short, the war on terror made great changes in governments and their attitudes toward people.
Transition in governmental policies is not the only change, but our perception of terrorism has changed greatly. We became more aware about terrorism. We started to think that terrorism exists in close proximity to our life. Even though terrorism has been problematic and caused tremendous damages and pain to many people in the past, it was not our issue but someone else’s. Now we feel it actually threatens our nation and lives. However, we should not forget that it is not only the problem of the United States, but also the problem of the world. Second change could be observed in media. They tend to focus and cover more news on terrorism in television, newspapers, and magazines after the September 11. We are more informed than before, however, we need to be aware that media selectively send information. They tend to change their attitude by their position, and sometimes such preference could distort facts.
Therefore, we need to distinguish what is fact and what is opinion. We also need to know and be aware what is going on in our society, especially for matters that threaten our lives. However, it is difficult to do so because of the media’s preference on what they cover. Thus we have to selectively receive information. We must distinguish what is fact and what is opinion. This blog is intended to seek a new perspective on international terrorism by exploring various media sources and thinking critically and analytically. Also, I will try to find what makes us unable to reach the truth.
*1 Department of Homeland Security. (2011). 9/11 Ten years since September 11, 2001. Retrieved from http://www.dhs.gov/files/9-11-ten-years.shtm
*2 Department of Homeland Security. (2011). Creation of the Department of Homeland Security. Retrieved from http://www.dhs.gov/xabout/history/gc_1297963906741.shtm
*3 Department of Homeland Security. (2011). Crosscutting programs retrieved from http://frwebgate2.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/TEXTgate.cgi?WAISdocID=6AFh1T/0/1/0&WAISaction=retrieve
Mendoza, M. (2011). “Global terrorism: 35,000 worldwide convicted for terror offenses since September 11 attacks. The Huffington Post. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/03/terrorism-convictions-since-sept-11_n_947865.html
