George W. Bush had a clear message for Americans following the 9/11 attacks. He told them to go shopping and to travel. “Get down to Disney World in Florida,” Bush said. “Take your families and enjoy life, the way we want it to be enjoyed.” Americans have heeded his advice ever since. Attendance and profits at Disney’s Orlando outpost have steadily risen, with the company reporting a 27 percent increase in its most recent quarter for a total of $7.12 billion in revenue.
The conventional wisdom is that the 9/11 terrorist plot fundamentally disrupted America. It was the end, we were told, of American innocence. Nothing would ever be the same. But as the Disney example underscores, the surprising thing isn’t how much America has changed but how little.
In domestic affairs, Americans have not broken new ground. Instead, much as in the 1970s they are grappling with high gas prices and the prospect of stagflation. Meanwhile, Democrats are accusing a Republican president of violating the constitution, much as they assailed Richard M. Nixon.
What about foreign affairs? Here, too, it is déjà vu all over again. Washington is stuck in a fresh war (or, if you prefer, a military operation) in the Middle East. At the same time, America’s overall geopolitical outlook looks remarkably consistent. It remains embedded in NATO and is urging its allies to increase defense expenditures. In Asia its ties to Japan, Taiwan and South Korea continue to hold, no matter the frictions that have periodically occurred.
The differences, then, between Pearl Harbor and 9/11 could hardly be starker. Back then Americans sacrificed on the home front to win World War II and become a global superpower. After 9/11, by contrast, they remained on autopilot.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect MBN’s editorial stance.
