Without 9/11

To worldly citizens, especially those who confide within the boundaries of the United States, the deadly terrorist attack of 9/11 has become one of the most well-known, historical encounters that has affected citizens both directly and indirectly. As many people know, this terrorist attack was caused by 19 members of a larger Islamic group called al-Qaeda who passionately disagreed with political and religious elements possessed by the United States as they took control of four airplanes in order to carry out suicide attacks. These four planes ended the lives of nearly three thousand people as two struck the twin towers of the World Trade Center, one struck the Pentagon directly outside of Washington D.C., and the last crashed in a lone field in Pennsylvania. This horrific historical event’s impact has forever changed the United States and the world around it, but very few people have ever considered how this country could have been different if President Bush and his troops had caught the hijackers before they entered the planes and conquered the land habited by al-Qaeda.

2001 Safety and Societal Norms

In the timeline in which the United States did not encounter 9/11, the most obvious differences from the original timeline are the basic elements of every day life that the average person does not take a minute out of their day to consider. For one, people will freely walk about the streets which primarily consist of minority, immigrant citizens. The natural-born United States citizens will not have an already pre-conceived racial stereotype in accordance to those belonging to the Arabic ethnicity. There will be no second thoughts or doubts regarding one’s safety on a plane as they sit down next to someone belonging to the Islamic faith. In addition to the lack of stereotypes in this alternate world, there are also shorter lines in airports as patrons only have to walk through one simple metal detector without the removal of clothing or personal items. In addition to this social aspect, the Trade Towers and the Pentagon will remain standing in their original form and the three thousand rescuers, bystanders, policemen, and victims in the buildings that were lost in the original timeline will carry on with their family and friends. As a result of the unchanging characteristics of these monumental buildings, the safety of patrons and tourists in these areas will not be a concern as they are able to freely walk in, and stand next to the Twin Tours and Pentagon with none of the restrictions held on them as they are in the original timeline.

2001 Governmental Processes

In addition to the in-tact buildings that represent the capital of the United States, there will not be a Patriot Act in the alternate timeline which will allow citizens to still feel safety within their country while still possessing the freedom granted to them through the Constitution. Originally, in the timeline in which 9/11 occurred, the Patriot Act allows for the United States government to take away Constitutional rights if one is deemed to be a terrorist. This is why today, in the original timeline, the United States Intelligence Agencies are able to view citizens through many forms of mobile devices, impairing their freedom and opposing on citizens’ Constitutional right to a free trial stated in the sixth amendment. Adding to the political variances between the alternate and original timelines, there is no trace of a War on Terror in Afghanistan or in Iraq in the alternate timeline. Instead, President Bush rallied his troops after the Intelligence Agencies reported their findings of the location and plans of al-Qaeda and their suicide bombers in order to prevent 9/11 from happening. They invaded the tunnels and underground housing in which al-Qaeda inhabited in both of these countries and gained control of this land as well as the United States Intelligence Agencies were able to end this threat of terrorism efficiently. As this happens, a member of the United States Army gains the possession of Osama bin Laden and brings him into America’s control. Still today in the alternate timeline, the United States holds Osama bin Laden captive in their most confined military prison in order to achieve any unknown information.

Furthermore, the United States government will have control over Afghanistan and Iraq in order to align this country’s lifestyle with that of the United States. In other words, in the alternate timeline, the United States makes both Afghanistan and Iraq proxy states in which the United States controls the interests and territories of both countries in order to protect the citizens from all three, ultimately limiting conflict. Because President Bush finds it of the utmost importance to make Afghanistan and Iraq proxy states, he also decides to establish a Democratic government in the new countries he is now able to control and develop.

2001-Present Long-term Effects:

            Although the prevention of 9/11 did not ultimately prevent the death of the Prophet Muhammad, it will avert the tensions between the Sunnis and Shiites. Originally, tensions between these two Islamic groups originated after their leader’s death because the Shiites were slowly falling down the totem pole both politically and allegiantly. As a result of the United States’ president and troops preventing the major 9/11 terrorist attack, they have also stepped foot in the Sunni and Shiite territory, providing leadership and reducing the tensions between these groups due to the competitive nature that had formed between them.

Most importantly, because of United States intervention, ISIS terrorist attacks are non-existent and their threat to the United States and their allies is not prevalent. In accordance to the United States stopping al-Qaeda from destroying the functionality of their country, they also prevent future terrorist attacks from an alternate terrorist organization. As a result of their previous initiative and prompt investigations, other terrorist groups such as ISIS do not view the United States as a vulnerable country, but instead are timid of their combative abilities and do not disturb the lives of this country or the allies that surround it.