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OPINION & EDITORIAL

National unity gives way to discord

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Also by Rob Rossmeissl:

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U.S. should re-evaluate free trade agreements to improve economy (April 24, 2007)
High quality city inspires progress (April 17, 2007)
Comic relief important in movies (April 9, 2007)
Shout outs harbor hatred (March 26, 2007)

by Rob Rossmeissl

Monday, September 12, 2005

Can you even remember what life was like before September 11, 2001? It seems not one facet of American society was left untouched as the nation reformed its mindset from that day on. Two wars, one presidential election and countless orders of "freedom fries" later, the United States of today seems only vaguely reminiscent of its former self. With all due respect to the immediate death toll, the terrorist attacks that took place four years ago made their biggest impression not by direct impact, but through a more enduring result.

No matter how catastrophic the physical events of that unsuspecting day were, the most potent and lingering effects of the events of Sept. 11 resulted from the political exploitation of the tragedy.

Had anyone doubted the American resolve prior to Sept. 11, 2001, they were proven to be badly mistaken.

For a brief period, people in the United States forgot the issues that traditionally divided them as they united through their shared feelings of vulnerability, fear and anger. Citizens hung flags on every block, patriotic anthems were played nonstop, and Americans seemed to relate to each other more than ever before. Sadly, while Sept. 11 proved capable of bringing out the best in people, those in power proved equally capable of using the tragedy to bring out the worst.

As difficult as it is to picture now, 2001 saw a presidency struggling to maintain legitimacy — a presidency so low on mandate it would never see its agenda realized. President George W. Bush, having clinched the highest office in the world with a 5-4 Supreme Court decision, had been off to a particularly rough start in his new job.

With the public skeptical of his policy plans, long vacations and apparent inability to properly ingest snack foods, President Bush's approval ratings hinted at an already-doomed reelection bid. On Sept. 11, 2001, however, a new window of opportunity opened for "W."

Despite his highly criticized immediate reaction to the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11 (perhaps a telling sign of President Bush's crisis responses to come), Americans were desperate for a leader, and they created one in the president. Realizing the potential of a United States craving direction, the Bush administration harnessed the unfocused energy of a fearful public and channeled it into a predetermined foreign and domestic policy agenda.

Before long, President Bush spent general public support for national solidarity on things like tax cuts, education reform and war. With the administration having made momentous gains in political capital, it almost seemed the policy issue least addressed by President Bush was the war on terror, although lip-service reminding Americans of their leader's wartime importance was certainly paid.

Today, rather than standing in unity, the United States comprises sharply divided political factions between which the animosity is more intense than ever. In pleasing its own base of support, the Bush administration has alienated mainstream America. The middle ground between "left" and "right" — two terms made tiresome by their excessive use in this hostile political environment — is eroding quickly. Such polarization could hardly have been expected on Sept. 12, 2001.

Sept. 11, 2001 created the potential for unprecedented American unity. By using the raw emotions of people reeling from a tragedy for his own political agenda, President Bush alienated half of a United States that so wanted to stand together in a cause. Despite its horrific immediate damage, the real tragedy of Sept. 11 has been its political abuse resulting in the division of a nation.

Rob Rossmeissl (rjrossmeissl@wisc.edu) is a senior majoring in political science.

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Anonymous (September 12, 2005 @ 4:14am):

See, that's why we should go to war when stuff like 9/11 happens. It helps us blow off steam, reminds the rest of the world that we're not a nation of wussies and that they all are(i.e. France) and it helps bring closure to the whole tragedy.

America the brave!!

Anonymous (September 12, 2005 @ 6:00am):

First of all, I fail to see the local relevance of this piece. I thought I remember the former editor-in-chief hinting last week that we can expect more locally-focused pieces in this paper, but perhaps I'm wrong.

That being said, let me expose the problems of these arguments. Rob gets a one thing right: Sept. 11, 2001 did create the potential for unprecedented American unity. Rob is wrong in where he attempts to assign the blame.

For one thing, some of what Rob is says is simply factually inaccurate or a product of his selective memory. Two of the examples that Rob cites as issues President Bush has pursued were on the table well before Sept. 11, 2001. The House began debating the education reform legislation within the two weeks of the Bush administration. Tax cuts were a done deal by summer 2001, and right before Jim Jeffords defected.

The removal of the regimes in both Afghanistan and Iraq had overwhelming public support in the few months following Sept. 11, 2001. Sept. 11, 2001 taught us that threats have to be dealt with before they materialize.

So what happened to national unity? When liberals point their finger on this at President Bush, three fingers point back at their side: one at Michael Moore and the Hollywood left, one at the fringe groups like moveon.org, and the other at Democrats who have aligned themselves with these fringe groups. It's not President Bush and his supporters that make documentaries that completely twist the truth on national issues or say that "President Bush doesn't care about black people". It's not President Bush and his supporters that paint pictures of their political opponents, depicting them in the likeness of Hitler. It's not President Bush and his supporters who appoint a lunatic and one of the most divisive political figures to run the second-most influential political party.

It's not President Bush and his supporters that have eroded national unity in this country. It's the left. Nice try, Rob.

Anonymous (September 12, 2005 @ 12:11pm):

Have you seen the "CRESCENT OF EMBRACE" memorial for Flight 93? Is this the kind of thing that supposed to unite us? With who?

It looks like the design for the memorial unveiled yesterday in Pennsylvania to commemorate the crash of UAL Flight 93 on 9/11 bears a striking resemblance to one of the major symbols of Islam.

The "Memeorial" looks more like a honor for the hijackers than anything else.

Makes me sick!!!!!!!

http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=GGLD,GGLD:2004-04,GGLD:en&q=%22CRESCENT+OF+EMBRACE%22