The Inside Scoop

The past few weeks have been very wearing on most people I know. Through all the news of the horrible tragedy that struck the nation this past week, we as students have been forced to continue. A lot of classes had their first big tests these past two weeks, and GC&SU’s students had to balance studying with activities. Adding to this classes were cancelled this past Tuesday, and some students are having to deal with individual losses. This stress is taking its toll on a lot of students, faculty and the rest of the world. How can we, as a nation and a community, deal with this?

Our country, for many years, has been separating further and further into different ideological and political groups. Ever since the Vietnam and Cold Wars came to an end, everything we deal with has been as a part of a “global community.” It is no longer politically correct for people to feel that America is special, that we are the protectors of the free world, even though we are. Society would have us believe that before this tragedy, America was not special, that we were always sticking our noses where they didn’t belong. I would argue that this same thing we have been criticized for and told that we shouldn’t do is the quality that will help America make it through this ordeal.

America has, since its founding, been growing in its role as a standard for charity, liberty, and service for our fellow nations. We have saved Europe in two world wars, and in fighting with the Allies, we revolutionized warfare. We invented nuclear technology and harnessed it to make the most powerful bomb ever. We then used that destruction-causing device to provide power for our nation and the world. We fought Communism at it worst, even sometimes within our own nation. We sent the first man to the moon and spurred our world on to greater achievements in science and other fields as well. We are America, and it is our pride in this nation and its achievements that will carry us through this.

Throughout this ordeal, I have noticed that people, as a whole, have been nicer. I have seen so many flags the past several days, and many people in our nation have reevaluated where they are in their lives and what their purpose is. The terrorists who perpetrate such acts as these usually seek to separate us, but this has only made us closer.

I have seen many emails these past few days speaking about petitions to sign and give to President Bush. Some of them are asking for support for different causes, and some of them are asking to prevent our nation from attacking the terrorists who committed this crime against our nation. This is just my opinion, but how will turning our backs and trying to show the terrorists that we are “better than them” stop them from doing something like this again? Why should we, as a nation, sit back and do nothing, letting these extremely determined individuals continue to kill innocent people in our nation? I think that anyone who thinks that these terrorists should not be punished should send their names to the terrorist. I ask those people who would oppose U.S. action against terrorism, what will it take for our nation’s actions to be justified?

This all may sound harsh, but it is people who oppose our government in a time like this that divide our nation. They make it harder for us to accomplish our goal. Just look at what a disaster the Vietnam War was. Men who were faithful to our country were betrayed by many in society, and many who fled our nation and dodged the draft, including former President Clinton, were praised for their beliefs. Now, I know that many people would argue with me and say that America is a free country and we are all entitled to our opinions. But it is the group that cannot stand as a whole that will ultimately lose a battle such as this. The terrorists are in agreement, and right now they are winning.

When our country was formed, certain things, such as sacrifice, were commonplace and a prerequisite for life in our new society. People back then knew what it meant to be part of something larger than individual, selfish pride and personal opinions. Don’t get me wron;, it’s not that we shouldn’t have our own opinions, but there is a time to express them and a time to surrender to a greater cause, such as freedom.

Freedom from tyranny is what this nation was founded on, and I hope that freedom from tyranny will be what keeps this nation together. In these trying times, you must think about what is best for our country before you oppose our government. As one of our most famous presidents, Theodore Roosevelt, once said, “Think not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.” Thanks everyone, and God bless America.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Sep 21 2001. Filed under Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry