Like many others, I am having "what if" thoughts on September 11. 2011, the tenth anniversary of the World Trade Center bombing. But not "what if it hadn't happened?" The Americans had no control over that. No, I am thinking "What if they had had a president other than Bush, who wasn't a war-monger?"
This is what I imagine: the bombing has happened, the buildings have fallen. The country is in shock and the president takes to the airwaves. This is what he says:
"My fellow Americans, we have suffered a horrible tragedy today. A terrible crime. Please believe me that all of our police forces, including the FBI and the CIA, will work together on solving this, and will not rest until any surviving perpetrators are captured and brought to trial.
In the meantime, all of us, as citizens, also have a job to do. We have to let these criminals know that they have not succeeded in their ultimate goal of terrorizing our country. We need to return, as much as humanly possible, to life as normal. We will not fear these disgusting criminals, or let them dictate how we live our lives. Thank you."
Just imagine: no constant wars, with thousands more innocents killed. No "Homeland Security". No arrest without cause and holding people without trial. No torture. No spying on citizens without warrants. Paying passengers on planes would not be treated like criminals. "Customs and Border Security" would still be "Customs and Immigration". No culture of fear.
Would they have captured all of the "bad guys" by now? Possibly not. Last I heard, they hadn't done that this way, either, but they have made a lot more enemies and lost a lot of friends.
One attack could have been just that. Horrible, awful, but confined. If only George W. Bush had kept it that way.
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