by Robert Batterson
Knight Ridder-Tribune
Back at the end of the 20th century - in December 1999 (or was that December 2000?) - there was a lot of confusion and debate over when the 21st century actually began; was it Jan. 1, 2000 or Jan. 1, 2001?
It was neither. The 21st century actually began on Sept. 11, 2001. That was the day that everything that defined life in America in the 20th century changed. That was the day everything changed. That was the day the 21st century began.
In the future, historians will mark that horrible day as the demarcation from the self-assured, overly confident and larger-than-life American Century to the new order of things: life in the consensus-based, inextricably-intertwined Global Century, with America the admired and despised World Superman.
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In the future, people will talk about the good old days back in the 20th Century, before Sept. 11, when America was the good guy. We stood tall in the world like Lady Liberty herself.
Back in the 20th century we felt safe and secure (we didn't really think "the big one" would ever be dropped); no one would dare try to attack us on our shores. If they did, they would feel the full fury and wrath of America's might. WE would drop the big one. But that was back in the 20th Century. That was back when you knew who the bad guys were: evil tyrants like Hitler, Tojo, Stalin, and Mao - insane mass murderers of millions.
We knew we had to stand up to them and we did.
And we knew who our friends were. Allies were allies - now they're neutrals. Allies could be counted on in the fight - now they tell us we can't launch our troops from their territory nor will they assist us in the war to take out a despotic, insane tyrant who might go after them next; correction - who WILL go after them next.
America is playing the same geo-politics game in the Middle East that it has been playing for decades: support and protect our friend, Israel, and try to keep the peace by supporting stable Arab regimes (even if they are undemocratic autocracies or outright brutal dictatorships). Only since Sept. 11 it isn't a game anymore. Everything suddenly came into sharp focus on Sept. 11, like the beautiful clear blue sky that day, pierced by jets; comes the destroyer of worlds. They want to kill us. We are at war.
So why are we still giving aid and comfort to regimes that clearly want us dead? Why do we continue to provide funding to the Palestinian Authority when it uses the funds to kill American students and then parade in the streets in joy? Why do we keep pretending that Saudi Arabia is our pal when we know it provides rewards to the families of suicide bombers and it has made it clear it will refuse to help America in the war on terror?
Nobody rational wants war, ever. But we're in one, and there's no denying what we have to do. We have to take it to the enemy and get the job done. But first we have to admit who the enemy is. Isn't it obvious? It's anyone who wants to kill us. It's anyone who helps anyone who wants to kill us. But we're in denial. We don't want to face the 21st century.
It began on Sept. 11.
Robert Batterson is the co-author of "The Pros and Cons of Globalization" (CSAB, Washington University in St. Louis, 2001). Readers may send him e-mail at robert-batterson@aismail.wustl.edu.
