9/11
report does little to change views
On
July 22, 2004 "The 9/11 Commission
Report: Final Report of the National Commission
on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States"
was published in bookstores across the nation.
The book is selling like hotcakes but will
the report make a difference in what people
believe?
With
popular controversial media like Michael
Moore's documentary "Fahrenheit 9/11"
and the hit single "Why" by rapper
Jadakiss spreading across the nation, how
will politically charged media affect the
public's reaction to the 9/11 Commission
Report?
Most
people have already decided what they believe
about the events of September 11 and the
report will do little to change their minds,
as it avoids controversy by publishing what
people already knew. Still, it is an interesting
story and easy to read, though the length
is daunting at 516 pages.
"Why"
by Jadakiss involves a line that is omitted
from most radio station edits, asking "Why
did Bush knock down the towers?" This
song will reach millions of teens and young
adults who will not take the time to read
the report and may have more influence on
their belief towards the attacks than the
government report.
Those
who have already made their decisions on
who caused 9/11 and the link of President
Bush to the events destroying the twin towers
will not be swayed in any direction by this
government report. Some even believe that
the Bush administration let the attacks
happen in order to wage war and further
corporate interests.
The
report postulates that government agencies
did not do enough about the terrorist threat.
According to the report, the CIA and FBI
missed 10 opportunities that could have
helped avoid September 11.
The
surveillance video from Dulles International
Airport shows the hijackers on the morning
of the planes' take-off. Four of the five
men set off alarms but were still allowed
to board the plane.
According to the report, the attacks should
not have been a surprise because the United
States had warning threats from extremist
groups. Unfortunately, the threats were
not taken seriously enough for major action
and were barely mentioned in the media or
presidential speeches.
Since
the report was published before the November
elections and while President George W.
Bush is still in power, it reflects worse
on the Bush administration than on the Clinton
administration, which may hurt the Republicans
in the upcoming election. The report criticizes
both Democrats and Republicans and both
parties contributed to the report.
The
report itself is very uncontroversial, leaving
the public to make its own decisions in
the blame game for the 9-11 attacks and
the war on Iraq. It does, however, say that
al Qaeda and Iraq did not conspire as Bush
had previously told the public.
Overall,
"The 9/11 Commission Report" is
a worthwhile read, giving us written information
about what happened with the terrorist attacks,
but those who have already made their decisions
or chosen to believe conspiracy theories
will not change their mind simply because
of this report.
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