September 11 and America’s Careless Diplomacy Essay -- September 11 Te

  Ã‚  Ã‚   For the past century, Americans have viewed the United States as standing as a symbol of strength, freedom, and prosperity. Recently, however, this perceived symbol of a higher society has been directly attacked by those who strongly disagree with the values projected by the United States. This is the first time since the Cold War that the stance of America has even been questioned. The most deliberating issue resulting from this atrocity has been how America should retaliate, or if the US should even retaliate at all. Within the past few weeks this question has been answered by actions from Washington. This action, however, has caused the emergence of even more questions. There are many deeply rooted problems to address that go beyond mere retaliation. To begin to solve these problems, the origins of conflict between America and the Middle East must first be addressed. It has been stated over and over again by politicians and journalists since September 11, that "evil terrorists" have attacked American values and institutions and Western civilization as a whole. However, as more time unfolds, this seems more and more like an overly simplified patriotic statement, and the real reason for the attack has become increasingly apparent; the acts of Al-Qa'ida were not an attack on American society, but an attack on US foreign policy. Bombing a few terrorist training camps may serve as a deserved immediate solution and a clarification that revenge has been sought; however it will not put an end to the alienations American foreign policies have created. A resolve to this "war" will require diplomatic measures and ultimate compromises, which will begin to undo the chaos the US has contributed in the Middle East. This turmoil can... ... Worldbook.com, Zionism and the Jewish Claim to Palestine, http://www.worldbook.com/fun/wbla/israel50/html/zion.htm Worldbook.com, The Idea of Israel Takes Shape, http://worldbook.com/fun/wbla/israel50/html/shap.htm CNN.com, Bin Laden, Millionaire With a Dangerous Grudge, Sept. 27, http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/09/12/binladen.profile/index/index.html Zmag.org, The United States and the Iran Iraq War, Shalom, Stephen R., http://www.zmag.org/zmag/articles/ShalomIranIraq.html FAS.org, Iran-Iraq War, http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/ops/war/iran-iraq.htm Afghan-web.com, Contemporary Afghanistan- the Last Sixty Years, http://www.afghan-web.com/history/articles/reshtya.html Coldwar.org, Afghan War, http://www.coldwar.org/articles/70s/afghan_war.php3 Mtholyoke.edu, The Terrible Regime: Taliban Rule, http://www.mtholyoke.edu/~mvcarmac/taliban.html