Comments about ‘Contrasting Pearl Harbor and 9/11’

Interesting article John. The most important contrast, however was in the wars that followed the first, after Pearl Harbor was fought and won. The second after 9/11 was fought and fought and fought with added new fronts by the next President. Truly the after of 9/11 is continual war almost as though we were looking for an on going economic stimulus plan.

"Both were periods of infamy and a threat to America's freedom." Perhaps. But not in the same way. The first was an actual threat to this country's survival. The attack on Dec 7, while clearly a strategic blunder, was backed by the force of a mighty war machine that was indeed a true and imminent threat to the nations of the world. Japan and Germany could have conquered the world. The American military was no match, whatsoever, to the formidable forces the Axis countries had created. We had to put together a war machine that could compete basically from scratch. And through sacrifice and determination that is exactly what the greatest generation did.

In contrast the attacks of Sept 11, while horrifying, were hardly a threat to the survival of our country, let alone the freedoms we enjoy. The threat to our freedoms were internal, not external. Terrorists can never force us to relinquish one freedom; American politicians could, though, and did.

The attacks of Sept 11, while atrocious examples of barbarity, and not to downplay the terrifying deaths, or amazing examples of courage, of people on that day, the attack was hardly more then a criminal act.