Wars that have seen far more than the 3,500 deaths that the U.S. saw, and a self-fulfilling prophecy; creating more anger and resentment against the U.S., more potential terrorists, and the complete opposite of what the neo-cons wanted; global downturn and U.S. decline instead consolidating their power and position in the world.
Over 6,000 U.S. soldiers killed in wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, with possibly 100 times that number of civilians in those countries (in Iraq, at an early point, there was an estimated range of 400,000 to 900,000 civilian deaths, which of course Bush had to reject, claiming it used flawed techniques, even though it used estimation techniques his own government agencies taught others to use).
By framing this as a war on terror, an excuse is now afforded to all governments to put in place tough security measured on any potentially flimsy basis. Subsequently, the predicted war on civil liberties and human rights has unfortunately proven true as human rights organizations...
Oftentimes, governments instill the mood of anger and vengeance as well as shock and disbelief, which reflects badly on U.S. society. Moreover, not all have wanted vengeance. Many families of the victims of 9-11 have campaigned for a more peaceful approach to combating terrorism.
Conclusion
Chomsky devoted several lectures that highlight the rise of moral integrity in which much lip service is given. His comments ring so true… The American people are very fragile and vulnerable, which yields a frightened society that seeks whatever means of justification to soothe their fears of any violation of human rights. Hence, this source of fear is fueled by media propaganda, media manipulation, sensationalism, scathing journalism and all the various other problems that have minimized coverage of deeper issues and understanding while allowing various claims to go almost unchallenged. Insomuch, this has created a crippled society.
