Changed a Generation “
troops he shepherds today have a dif- ferent view of danger. “In the 1990s, people [in the Army] said, ‘I’d like to get some money for school.’ They didn’t expect to fi ght. After 9/11, these guys know it. They seek it.” He adds with pride, “There’s a real feeling of service out there among a certain group of Americans.”
Young Americans have come to a realization. “Every generation has to grow up,” says Nick Fandos, a Harvard freshman. “Most of us were not directly affected by the attacks or the wars that followed, but the shadow of terror and uncertainty is perhaps even more frightful young person.”
to a
That impact was so profound, some experts believe, it may help account for the rise of social media. Research supports the idea that Generation 9/11 is more connected than any to come before.
After all, the desperate search to
learn the whereabouts and condition of loved ones was the national fi xa- tion in the aftermath of the attacks. Impromptu message boards sprung up in New York City plastered with missing-person posters whose head- lines were anguished pleas of separa- tion: “Have U Seen My Husband?” Message boards and cellphones became the indispensable tools in the aftermath of 9/11, as families tried to reach out to loved ones.
There is a measurable surge in young people for repaying America for its blessings. According to the 2010 Millennial Donors Study of 3,000 adults under 35, 93 percent have given to nonprofi t groups despite a weakened economy. Nearly 8 in 10 have volunteered.
Pat Somers, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin, is con-
ducting a study of the effects of 9/11 on today’s college stu- dents. After 50 interviews, she reports four long-term effects: global awareness, patriotism/political involve- ment, civic engagement, and choice of career or livelihood. A third of the students in Somers’ study said they had strengthened their level of civic engagement. At least 1 in 5 of the students
sur veyed said they had completely altered their career path because of what happened on that terrifying day. Zach Laychak, 19, is a University of Arizona sophomore from Virginia whose father David, a civilian budget analyst, was killed in the Pentagon attack on 9/11. Laychak has interned with the Washington, D.C., police department.
He’s considering a
career in law enforcement. And like so many of his generation, he will never take America for granted.
9/11 VOICES “
The Bush administration changed our [terrorist] policy from being defensive to being off ensive: to going after the terrorists where they were, to attacking their bank accounts, addressing the problem of having countries being hospitable or assisting terrorists, and making everything they do more dif icult — harder to communicate on the phone, harder to raise money, harder to recruit, harder to train. And if we make it to Sept. 11, 2011, and do achieve a decade without a successful attack in the United States of America, it will have been an enormous accomplishment, and something that I don’t think very many people actually believed would be possible.
d — Donald Rumsfeld | Secretary of Defense, 2001-2006 ” SEPTEMBER 2011 / NEWSMAX / 9|11: A DECADE LATER 73
There’s a real feeling of service out there among a certain group of Americans.
—Kurt Schlichter | Lt. Col., Army ”
“Every single day I’m happy and proud to be an American,” he says. “Because I’ve traveled overseas, I know that Americans have freedoms other countries can only dream about. The people who died on 9/11 died protecting those freedoms.” Will Ditto, a 25-year-old aide work- ing on Capitol Hill, joined the crowd that gathered in front of the White House on the night bin Laden’s death was announced. “It’s huge,” he told The Associated Press. “It’s a great day to be an American.”
Kyle Smith writes about culture and current events for The New York Post.
SCHLICHTER/COURTESY OF REMY HAYNES / RUMSFELD/AP IMAGES
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116