Terrorism and the Crash of Flight 103

Perhaps the people of this country have gone too long believing they are immune to the terrorist activities that have long plagued European nations. The tragic and senseless crash of Pan Am Flight 103 has brought us back to reality. We are not invincible.

Being a student at the University of Wisconsin, I was shocked by the death of the 38 innocent and unsuspecting students aboard the flight, coming home from their semester abroad in London. Some of those students were my fellow classmates. Shivers ran up my spine as I listened to the news, realizing these people were not coming home for Christmas. They would never be coming home again. It could as easily have been me aboard that flight, as only a year ago, I myself, made the trip back to the states from a semester abroad in London. Somehow I feel this tragedy robbed me of the innocence and naivete that only the young can have . . . that I should still have.

America has always set a precedent for other countries, both in its foreign and economic policy. The U.S. also sets the climate in the political arena. Other countries follow where we lead. We, as citizens of the United States, have a duty to uphold the values of what America stands for.

We cannot continue to support governments which condone or engage in terrorist activities, with military or economic assistance. The United States, at present, is responsible for over 26% of the world’s arms exports and is one of the largest suppliers of foreign economic assistance. By supplying countries, such as those in the Middle East, we are adding fuel to the fire. We are giving them the capability to develop and utilize weapons for the purpose of terrorism, which is then used against us. Has the value of human life so drastically declined that we would put our foreign policy objectives before the safety of the people of this nation?

Organizations such as the Palestinian Liberation Organization and renegade Abu Nidal’s Revolutionary Council of Fatah, which so blatantly disregard the value of human life, do not deserve our recognition or to be heard at the United Nations. Both groups have a history of using sophisticated explosives, while terrorist activities have escalated over the years.

It is time for the United States to take a stand. We must renounce terrorism and let it be known that these acts of violence will not be tolerated. To let this terrorist act go unpunished is to tell the world that those 258 American lives did not matter, and only serves to increase the possibilities that it will happen again in the future.

BETH SILVERMAN

Westlake Village