What was the U.S.A. like before 9/11?

I'm really curious. I was 10 years old when 9/11 happened. I remember being at school when it happened. I had no idea what or where the WTC even was. I had no idea why so many people were upset about this. Of course it dawned on me later when I got to see the footage on tv, especially of those jumpers avoiding the fire. I remember some people becoming so ready for war, a lot of men around my area enlisted because they felt the need to.

I have spent pretty much my whole teenage and now adult life in a country at war. I don't know what police were like before they became so militarized. I don't remember life before the patriot act.

Not that many people talk about what life was really like before that, because they forget that not all of us know about it. I would like to hear some honest answers of what it was like, nostalgia is ok as well.

reply to post by IratePotatoes


- One could go to the terminal up to the gate at an airport and watch loved ones leave.
- People were not as racist to middle eastern cultures
- Not so much paranoia and fear

Among many other examples.

reply to post by IratePotatoes


Before 9/11 people thought that Afghanistan was a made-up word, and that iRaq and iRan were accessories to the iPod, the first being an holder for the car, the second an excercise tracking app.

After 9/11, people have difficulties pointing out the countries they are at war with and/or confusing the ones they are and aren't in war with.

Besides that, added security, fear and paranoia.

I'm not trying to troll, but I notice it seems like people are having difficulty's explaining what has really changed. IMO, what has largely changed is the fact that everyone now have access to the internet and it is easier to spread fear and discontent.

Cell phones were uncommon. The economy was good. We used payphones and telephone books. People minded their own business. Gas used to be as low as a dollar per gallon ciggarettes were $2 a pack. People were nice and easy to get along with. I could go on. Ironically i was having a hard time finding work and accepted a job as a mortgage broker that very same day. It did not go over so well.

Also youre to young to remember desert storm but it renewed the old war that had lost popularity with americans. The only other pivotal point worth mentioning is the fall if the berlin wall under president reagan and waco and columbine massacre under clinton. Truth is it was going downhill long before 9/11 but that allowed them to do the stuff theyre getting away with now.

I personally think we've gotten to the point that we're "required" to have to many things. You now need tablets, cellphones, netflix, HD cable, Digital recorder, wtf ever.

We're expected to constantly shell out for something new, and take on bills that weren't there before. As soon as we realize we can't afford everything that we're "required" to have in this modern society we act like it's the end of the industrialized world.

If you were to cut a lot of the modern BS out of your wants, and just look at your needs I don't think the average American would be doing to bad. I have friends who would be willing to complain about money to about anyone, while pecking away at their smartphone which most likely has a $200 monthly bill.

I can't really look down on it though, I myself waste more money than I'd be willing to admit on things that I thought I needed, when in reality I was just trying to keep up.

Before 9/11 people were not bothered about Islam or sharia law...

Oh wait... they were:



Sharia don't like it, dun du dun... Rock the Casbah!

reply to post by IratePotatoes


There was a lot more freedom, a lot more privacy. What happened is the tech emerged to know a lot more about people, and that's the world you've grown up in, one where people are more connected and know more about each other, even strangers, than before.

In some ways it was bad, like back then you could meet people in the middle of nowhere and it was just you and them, no phones, there was question if they were going to kill you and you'd be found weeks later. Now you have a cell, so do they, not to mention the onstar in your car watching everything, not to mention all the other things tracking all involved.

But the truth was that people generally didn't kill you, and it gave a certain faith in mankind that we've lost now that everything is under surveillance. That faith extended to global policies too, we felt we had a real shot at peace in the 90s, not because of global control, but because an innate goodness in people, a waking up to the irrelevance of violence in a brave new world.

Ask any innocent youth in Iraq or Afghanistan this question (one that is still alive). They'll probably tell you about how their country used to be stable and their family fed, and now all they have is a war-torn hell hole and all they see around them is death and anguish.

Originally posted by tridentblue
In some ways it was bad, like back then you could meet people in the middle of nowhere and it was just you and them, no phones, there was question if they were going to kill you and you'd be found weeks later. Now you have a cell, so do they, not to mention the onstar in your car watching everything, not to mention all the other things tracking all involved.

You could also actually have a real conversation without them checking their phone every two seconds.

Originally posted by jhill76
reply to post by IratePotatoes

 

- One could go to the terminal up to the gate at an airport and watch loved ones leave.

True.. I remember that even here in Aus. Now you get treated like you're entering a prison to visit an inmate rather than seeing loved ones off.

- People were not as racist to middle eastern cultures

Naww yes they were. They just weren't doing it in anger.

United States

William A. Dorman, writing in the compedium The United States and the Middle East: A Search for New Perspectives (1992) notes that whereas "anti-Semitism is no longer socially acceptable, at least among the educated classes. No such social sanctions exist for anti-Arabism."

In the mid-1970s, prominent American Objectivist author, scholar and philosopher Ayn Rand, expressed strong anti-Arab sentiment following the Arab-Israeli War of 1973: "The Arabs are one of the least developed cultures. They are typically nomads. Their culture is primitive, and they resent Israel because it's the sole beachhead of modern science and civilization on their continent. When you have civilized men fighting savages, you support the civilized men, no matter who they are."

Western media

Like the image projected of Jews in Nazi Germany, the image of Arabs projected by western movies is often that of "money-grubbing caricatures that sought world domination, worshipped a different God, killed innocents, and lusted after blond virgins."

en.wikipedia.org...

- Not so much paranoia and fear

Not as many terrorist events within home borders as opposed to hearing about it happening to an embassy somewhere. Now they walk up to your house.

Among many other examples.

Attitudes have not changed so much. If anything, we're more accommodating now to their every whim than ever before. For fear of being afraid.

reply to post by IratePotatoes


Many had faith in the US, actually believed we were the good guys.
Sure there were countries that knew better as well as individuals here but, like someone else pointed out, internet access was not as it is nowadays.
The only news we had was the nice man in the tie who lied at 6 and 11 o'clock.
We were naive'.
Ignorance was bliss.
Now we can know what the president will be having for breakfast before he does.
Sure it is easier to spread paranoia to the slow of mind but, there is so much disinformation out there now, it is hard to really know which way is up.
So just chill, everything will be fine.
And if they come to your door, greet them with love and a pressure cooker.



Full of wholesome food you paranoid gits.
People think clearer on a full stomach.

reply to post by g146541


Op asked what life was like before 9/11 not what for the before and after picture of your brain.

Originally posted by txinfidel
reply to post by g146541

 

Op asked what life was like before 9/11 not what for the before and after picture of your brain.

Struck a nerve then I did huh, Tiger?
I think I pinned it pretty good.
You don't have to agree, you have a right to be wrong.

Originally posted by SilentKoala

Originally posted by tridentblue
In some ways it was bad, like back then you could meet people in the middle of nowhere and it was just you and them, no phones, there was question if they were going to kill you and you'd be found weeks later. Now you have a cell, so do they, not to mention the onstar in your car watching everything, not to mention all the other things tracking all involved.

You could also actually have a real conversation without them checking their phone every two seconds.

Lol! Ain't that the truth. I still miss those old coffee shops where you could actually meet people and strike up conversations. Now they are wifi hotspots for people who want to surf like they do in their living rooms, outside their living rooms.

reply to post by g146541


Not really if you think that americans are not decent people then i suggest you gtfo!

But seriously op asked an honest question, not about your political views.

reply to post by txinfidel


Uh, that guy is American...so...yeah.

Before 9/11

I could board a plane without being treated like a potential criminal and not have my body molested by a stranger.

Not hearing the word "terror" "terrorist threat" "Patriot act" "Terror threat level" all of the time.

You could take photos at national memorials without being considered a suspect.

I could take photos at a train station of friends and family without problems. A year after 9/11, my camera was confiscated by a BART cop for taking photos of friends. They said I could be taking pictures of the train station itself so they took it away.