How did America let 9/11 happen?

Have you ever wondered how the terrorist group that attacked us on 9/11 came to think of such an awful deed to do?

Passages from history.com which is written by historians and used widely for news explains the motivation for the twin towers attack.

http://orientalreview.org/

"The attackers were Islamic terrorists from Saudi Arabia and several other Arab nations. Reportedly financed by Saudi fugitive Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaeda terrorist organization, they were allegedly acting in retaliation for America’s support of Israel, its involvement in the Persian Gulf War and its continued military presence in the Middle East. Some of the terrorists had lived in the United States for more than a year and had taken flying lessons at American commercial flight schools."

I found it interesting that this was the reason for the attack on the United States. This group seemed to have something to be mad at America for, and it was what happened in this specific war. But how was the terrorist group so sneaky as to take these flying classes and sneak box cutters and weapons onto the planes they were boarding? It seems to me that if you are going to take a pilot’s class, where you are planning on flying a plane and having a lot of people’s lives in your hands, you should have a background check done. Also, how was security so lazy as to not catch the box cutters on the terrorist’s luggage?

Many people wonder if there were more planes going to different locations in the U.S. as another attack. Another passage from history.com explains this theory.

"Meanwhile, a fourth California-bound plane–United Flight 93–was hijacked about 40 minutes after leaving Newark International Airport in New Jersey. Because the plane had been delayed in taking off, passengers on board learned of events in New York and Washington via cell phone and Airfone calls to the ground. Knowing that the aircraft was not returning to an airport as the hijackers claimed, a group of passengers and flight attendants planned an insurrection."

I thought this was kind of weird that the plane continued to take off after a 40 minute delay and they had already had heard what happened in New York. Weren't the passengers, crew, and/or pilot at least a little bit suspicious that this could have happened on their flight, too? The flight should not have taken off, or the TSA or flight crew should have gone back and checked everyone’s bag a second time. The flight was delayed and everyone on the plane had already learned about what happened, so why didn't anyone cancel the flight?

So what does the United States do nowadays to prevent things like this from happening and educating people on what happened?

“Operation Enduring Freedom, the American-led international effort to oust the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and destroy Osama bin Laden’s terrorist network based there, began on October 7. Within two months, U.S. forces had effectively removed the Taliban from operational power, but the war continued, as U.S. and coalition forces attempted to defeat a Taliban insurgency campaign based in neighboring Pakistan. Osama bin Laden, the mastermind behind the September 11th attacks, remained at large until May 2, 2011, when he was finally tracked down and killed by U.S. forces at a hideout in Abbottabad, Pakistan. In June 2011, President Barack Obama announced the beginning of large-scale troop withdrawals from Afghanistan, with a final withdrawal of U.S. forces tentatively scheduled for 2014.”

I think that this program being made was a great idea. It gives the United States the opportunity to stop things like this from happening in the future and it disbands a somehow powerful group that could be dangerous to the United States. The death of Osama Bin Laden was just the beginning, and the United States has just opened the door to more of a serious and long term effect on the Taliban and Al Qaeda. This can prevent more dangerous things from happening in the future and can discourage the group after they have lost their leader.

DQ: How do you think the United States could have prevented something like this from happening without even knowing something like this could have been done?

FUTURE RESEARCH: How can governments prevents attacks like 9/11?