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The ushering in of the 21^st century also ushered in a critical look at terrorism in the society, especially among the Americans. This was heightened by the September 11 attack on the United States that left nearly 3000 people dead and a lot of casualties. This left a lot of negative effects on the American society, especially on their attitude towards the Arab community. However, whereas the September 11 attack on the US is recounted and associated with a lot of negative effects, there are few positive effects that can be attributed to this terrorist attack on the Americans.

To begin with, one of the positive effects of September 11 terrorism attack on the United States lies in the fact that there is a drastic change in the perception of the Americans towards Muslims. This is specifically so among the American Muslims who have changed their view towards radical Islam and instead taken their position by condemning this kind of extremism among their peers. According to Jaques (2002), this has resulted in an emerging self-criticism that is promoting very important and constructive discussions about the nature of Islamic thought in the contemporary world. Stated in other words, most of the American Muslims began siding with their fellow Americans from other religions on opposing Islam radicalism and calling for restraint among their 'brothers'.

It is also important for one to understand that there are high concerns among the Americans concerning their general security in the society, whether when they are at home of away from home (Jaques, 2002). In this regard, most Americans are more concerned with their security welfare more than they were years before the September 11 attack on their country. Consequently, this has forced the US government to develop policies and strategies of protecting its boundaries and other areas that could face or rather are vulnerable to security threats. Additionally, there are additional measures that were introduced after the September 11 attack that have continued to play a critical role in ensuring the US and general the globe is safe from terrorist activities.

Most Americans did not see the importance of fighting terrorism as a security threat both to the United States and the globe as a whole. Instead, depending on its highly trained security bodies, the Americans believed that they were terrorism-proof and could not be attacked. However, after September 11, most Americans have gone as far as supporting not only the implementation of security measure in their country but also nations that are entangled in terrorist activities. This support includes the approval of US military action against nations such as Iraq and Afghanistan that are terrorist habitats in the Middle East. More important is the fact that the US has been able to align itself in such a way that its has planned well ahead of time on how to prevent terrorism with the support from its citizens rather than waiting to implement reactionary plans after an attack. Among these plans include taking terrorism insurance cover that deals with the issues of terrorism (Nadel, 2004, p.1.38).

Therefore, whereas the September 11 attack on the US is recounted and associated with a lot of negative effects, there are few positive effects that can be attributed to this terrorist attack on the Americans. First, there is a change of perception towards Islam radicalism especially among the American Muslims. More Americans believe that extremism is unaccepted in religion and in this case Islam (Jaques, 2002). Similarly, there is a lot of support of government programs and projects toward building enhanced security that allows freedom of movement of the Americans without any worry of being attacked by terrorists. With this in mind, the US government, urged by the American citizens has been able to forge forwards by developing preventive strategic plans rather than engaging in reactionary plans that are in most cases ineffective.