War On Terror - Ten Years Since The 9-11 Terrorist Attacks

In the following article an issue is on discussion: What effect have American Government determinations after 9-11 attacks had in the country and in the rest of the world?

9-11 Attacks - New York

No sooner had the two airplanes crashed against New York World Trade Center than President George Bush decided to take action against terrorists. He decided to start a "war against terror". However, to what terror was he referring to? Which country was to be pointed as responsible for that vicious attack? Afghanistan or Iraq?

What is clear is that there are three main factors that can be highlighted after 14 years: Fear and hatred towards muslims has grown, as now they are associated right away with terrorism. The image of US as a powerful nation has been damaged irremediably to the eyes of the rest of the world, especially when it comes to anger and resentment. Finally, the uncountable number of victims, ranging from a toll of 400.000 to 900.000 civilians and up to 6000 if we talk about american soldiers.

Journalist Jim Lobe even suggests that Al Quaeda plans for ending with the American Century have been a success, as international policy elite believes that Bush administration reaction was over the top after the attacks. As a consequence, Talibans have had the chance to reorganize in Afghanistan fighting for a common enemy, and at the same time, the rest of the world has condemned U.S. for some war actions that haven't been properly justified, definitely damaging its reputation. Furthermore, So expensive has been the "war on terror" that direct or indirect costs from Washington are estimated to be almost 4.4 trillions of dollars in the last 10 years, leaving the country to the edge of bankruptcy. 

As a conclusion, it can be said that US had been seeing itself for years as a superpower, and the 9-11 attacks gave them the chance to show this supposed supremacy internationally. Nevertheless, not until more than 10 years have passed, have they noticed to what extent this situation has broken the hegemony of Washington. It's true that a perfectly understandable feeling of vengeance dominated US society as a whole right after the attacks. However, there were many individual voices that claimed for a more peaceful way to deal with the situation, and today, even families involved in the attack as victims long for another way of fighting terrorism out of the war.