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Argumentative Essay About 9/11

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On September 11, 2001 the Twin Towers in New York City were attacked by terrorist group Al-Qaeda, in an event that would rattle the very foundation of the United States. This traumatizing and tragic event would lend into question the stability of America against foreign forces. However, despite the seemingly bleak outlook towards the potential threat of similar attacks, it can be clearly seen that these hypothetical dangers would not be the downfall of the American state. As former President Abraham Lincoln once stated, “America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.” This assertion remains highly valid and applicable to contemporary society, despite its old age. …show more content…

These internal flaws were especially exemplified during the 9/11 attacks as resistance to the alien strikes was amplified. One of the main reasons that Lincoln’s observation remains true in the modern day is due to the faulty and disjointed communication found frequently in emergency services. During the attacks on the twin towers, authorities such as the New York Fire and Police Departments played a crucial role in assisting evacuees to safety. However, in spite of these critical positions, the ability to communicate between the fire and police departments was exceptionally limited, putting strain on rescue operations. In fact it was stated that, “... these two agencies didn’t train together often or well. They couldn’t talk to each other by radio because their frequencies did not match. And they didn’t share equipment,” (Dwyer and Flynn 57). This quote demonstrates that underlying problems between the two departments had been prominent long before the crisis at the Twin Towers. Moreover, dispatching issues served as a security hinderance to the civilians trapped within the walls of the towers. This claim is upheld even greater with the fact that, “FDNY chiefs had instructed the PAPD and …show more content…

During the construction of the Twin Towers a new code on building safety was created that ultimately “made it cheaper to build tall buildings” by cutting back on safety regulations. This included lowering the requirements for space dedicated to “evacuation and exit,” (Dwyer and Flynn 107). When the Twin Towers were crashed into by the planes, the three stairwells in each building were largely rendered useless due to their congested configuration (110). In addition to this disastrous layout, “the builders should have installed the fourth staircase, one specifically designed to accommodate the 1,000 people who would use the large public meeting rooms at the top of each building,” (267-268). This conveys that the Port Authority, who were supervising the construction of the buildings, had near complete disregard towards the security of the people in the Twin Towers. To further cement this point as especially heinous, much of this is a result of prioritizing financial profit over the wellbeing of people. As aforementioned, the subtracting of safety features such as a fourth staircase made tall buildings more cost effective. Again, there is a fundamental issue within America if corporate greed and recklessness can surpass the absolute necessity of public safety. Also, not only was there irresponsibility in the making of the building, but

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