It is my sincere hope that the long-standing stereotype of Americans and their rampant apathy is breaking down. Unfortunately, this breaking of stereotypes does not seem to be occurring. In fact, it seems that any enlightenment being gained as a result of 9/11 and the current increased level of violence in Israel vanishes into nationalism. We seem so lost in revenge that our goal of secured peace is overshadowed by our violent attempt to exterminate terrorism. I am reminded of the old argument of means and ends. Do the ends justify the means? In this case the question of ends become irrelevant. In an evolving society there are no ends. There is only the continual change. Therefore, the ends disappear and we are left with only means. For this reason we must concern ourselves with appropriate means. In reality, any peace secured by these violent means will be relegated to the realm of illusionary security. It is virtually impossible to protect the public against persons who are willing to sacrifice their lives in a terrorist attack. At best we create a false security embodied in a meaningless, yet dramatic, color coordinated system. And this drama helps us feel that someone somewhere is effectively protecting our well-being. Terrorism is the weapon of the oppressed. With few other alternatives to secure public attention, severely oppressed persons see in terrorism a powerful weapon. It should be obvious to any American (unless you’ve been in a sensory deprivation tank for the last seven months) that the destruction of the World Trade center took words like “Al-Quida,” “bin Laden,” and “Taliban” and transformed them from obscure ideas known only to specialists into dominant phrases in American culture. It is in our own reaction to these events that we must find a new course of action. In attempting to raise awareness of their situation, the terrorist groups lost any empathy that the global community might have developed for them. Therefore, we must remember that a violent reaction, especially a violent campaign over an extended period of time, will eventually increase any existing disdain for America, not to mention cultivating new contempt. What then shall we do? We must realize that the feeling of true security and the concept of peace are not separate goals. In the same manner, peace and justice cannot occur separate from one another. Security, peace, and justice are intricately woven together to the point that the absence of any one indicates the absence of all three. If we truly wish for security, we must cultivate peace through just means. We must use the situation we have created (i.e. the strength of U.S. hegemony) in a useful way. Currently, our foreign policy seems to have little to do with out professed moral standards. We lend support to nations or groups with decidedly anti-American “values.” If we are not promoting justice, what are we promoting? We need to demand that Israel withdraw from Palestinian lands to cease the escalation of violence until more acceptable terms of living for both sides can be established. We should threaten to remove our military aid until the oppression of the Palestinians is ended. We also need to refuse any recognition of an independent Palestinian state until violent acts against Israelis end. I do not profess to fully understand the intricate dynamics between these two groups. However, I do believe that any interaction between the U.S. and either group must be governed by serious consideration of just means and professed beliefs. Only then can we find adequate definitions of what we consider to be justice. Sadly, we curently seem content to distribute revenge under the guise of justice. The only way to battle terrorism is to remove the motivation for terrorism. Voices must be heard and we must lend our power to allow for these voices to be heard. The cultivation of justice is our only hope for true security. Otherwise we will remain in a constant color-coordinated state of hyper-security and artificial safety.

Michael Ryan BRINKMEIERDU student