Comment: The impact of 9/11 can be clearly seen after ten years of that devastating attack that made the United States lose its way in the so-called war on terror declared by former President George W. Bush.
Contrary to Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg, who said right after the mass killings by Anders Breivik that Norway’s answer would be more openness and more democracy, Bush went on a $3-trillion foreign policy crusade that has cost the United States dearly.
Writes Speigel Online International: “For a short time after the attacks, the country seemed united. Americans embraced each other. Even the cold city of New York suddenly seemed warm. But instead of cultivating public spirit, President Bush sought to find a pretext — any pretext — to invade Afghanistan and Iraq. This is his most tragic legacy, the fact that America can no longer even mourn its victims properly — because Americans have long been not just victims, but also perpetrators.”
If there is one party in Finland that can thank Bush it is the Perussuomalaiset (PS). The US’ war against the Muslim world gave rise to Islamophobists like Jussi Halla-aho and a long list of others. Without their anti-immigration and anti-Muslim rhetoric the PS could have never won 39 seats in the April election.
In 2003 I published an opinion-piece on Suomen Kuvalehti on the US invasion of Iraq and how it would have catastrophic consequences for the credibility of that country. At least for me, the Iraq invasion was a strong whiff of deja vu since it was the way Washington handled its big-stick policy in Latin America.
“Latin America was a region where coups – oops! régime change — occurred on a grand scale. If experience of how the U.S. influenced Latin America in the last century is anything to go by, the people of the Middle East are in big trouble,” I wrote back in 2003.
Probably the saddest matter of 9/11 is that the United States under Bush started to believe its own spin and invincibility.
Where were you on 9/11 and how to do you think that attack, which should be seen as a crime and not as a declaration of war against all Muslims, changed the world?
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The events of Sept. 11, 2001 led to a wave of solidarity with the US. But the superpower has lost that goodwill over the course of the wars it subsequently waged. Now America is mainly seen not as the victim of terrorism, but as a perpetrator of violence itself.
Headline in 10 years time: How the rise of the “True Finns” Triggered Finland’s Decline
BlandaUpp, I think the PS have brought more negative things to Finland than positive one. For the immigrant community and Muslims they have been a threat. If you look at how Finland is reacting to the outside world, it is more than clear that the PS has spraked Finland’s decline, which means social and economic poverty. But not to worry. Soini will feed us with his colorful words.
Here is a very good analysis by The Independent on 9/11. Thank you Alan Dunn for the heads up!
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/robert-fisk-for-10-years-weve-lied-to-ourselves-to-avoid-asking-the-one-real-question-2348438.html
– Without their anti-immigration and anti-Muslim rhetoric the PS could have never won 39 seats in the April election.
I disagree. PS would have won still, because the EU bailout issue.
Niko, maybe you are right and certainly the bailouts in Europe have helped the PS. But, as you know, there is a big debate: how much did the anti-immigration and anti-Islam vote bring to the PS. I think it was a major component together with the EU bailouts.
I was sitting upstairs at Molly Malone’s, along with about 20 other people, as the TV was tuned to some international news channel that kept on showing the twin towers in a cloud of smoke. At the time, I remember thinking to myself, what has USA gotten itself into this time and how much damage will this cause to people in other countries. Without dismissing the fate of Afghanis and Iraqis, I think that the biggest consequence of 9/11 has been the ridiculous increase of security theater in the travel industry and the unjustified rise of a police culture keen on finding everyone and their neighbor potentially guilty of terrorism and thus subject to indefinite emprisonment without due process. Back then, I thought that what followed 9/11 ought to be a good enough reason for UN to move its headquarters from New York to a city in more neutral county e.g. Brazil and for USA to permanently lose its seat on the UN security council. Nowadays, I would go one step further and fully support the invasion of USA (and Israel) by foreign powers.