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NOTE: I’m far-left libtard who has some controversial views on some Conservative issues. If you are a Conservative, please picture an American flag flapping slowly in the apple-pie scented breeze at a N.A.S.C.A.R rally, while pressing the back button on your browser. This way, you can avoid throwing a Pabst Blue Ribbon can at your computer screen, and we can avoid poorly written grunts written in our comments section. KTHX

If you get easily offended, this article may not be for you.

~b4nd1t

2001 was arguably the most important year of this decade. It contained the worst attack against the west since Pearl Harbor so far (hopefully, this will never have to be updated.) But, there were other stories in the year 2001, and, though 9/11 is the most important, other events did occur in 2001.

In January, the scandal-plagued Clinton administration finally ended. The actions of Bill swung the country to the far right, and they “elected” a failed oilman/ baseball team owner George Walker “Texas Ranger” Bush.  His first action as dictat- I mean President was the “No Child Left Behind” Act, which drowned children in a sea of standardized tests. Though the original purpose (thought of by Dick Cheney) was  to kill stupid children, Bush realized that this would include him, so, using his Presidential super powers, he presto-changoed the bill to just cut funding to underprivileged minorities, something the Republicans just LOVE to do. Seriously, does it make sense to TAKE AWAY funding to those that need it the most? That’s some crazy Conservative “logic” I just can’t wrap my head around.

In other news, lots of people got eaten by sharks.

Another thing that we commonly associate 2001 with is the dot-com bubble burst. For a few years now, and company that prefixed itself with the letter “e” or suffixed itself with “.com” were selling there stocks at record prices. This fantasy ended badly for most of them. One such company that fell down into the pit of hell was AOL. America Online was the Internet capital from 1996-2000. “You’ve got mail” became one of the first internet memes to enter into mainstream media, it was bigger than the Dancing Baby for Christ’s sake! But, AOL made a deadly mistake. It joined forces with the mainstream media, namely Time Warner. It would be a very quick plummet from that point.

But, the most significant event to take place in 2001 was, of course, 9/11. It was a shock to the world, and the events that transpired need to never be forgotten. I remember I was very young when I heard of the attacks. I didn’t fully understand what was going on at the time, but I remember sitting in class and being told that America was under attack. I didn’t feel fear, so much as a great sadness. The fear came later, for about a year, every time I saw a plane in the sky by my school, I felt a small wave of panic crash over me. The fears were irrational, of course. I don’t think that an elementary school in a smallish Canadian (yes I’m Canadian) town would necessarily be on the top of Al-Qaeda’s list of prime targets, but, I think that everybody felt the same panic I did, not just for themselves, but for the world as a whole.

The attacks, though extremely significant, were not as important as the paranoia and fear that swept all western nations after the attacks. No one knew when the next attack would be. There would be more attacks, including the anthrax scare, and in later years the bombings in Madrid and London, but the fear that 9/11 inspired allowed the government to commit grave abuses of power. Wiretappings against innocents. Use of torture, in grave violation of the Geneva Convention, the unconstitutional P.A.T.R.I.O.T Act. McCarthyist witchhunts, with the word “Communist” simply replaced with the word “Terrorist”. All of these crimes were committed to protect freedom, but, is there any freedom left to protect?

~b4nd1t