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Alarming number of college students claim US deserved 9/11: poll
A Buckley Institute poll found that 22% of 803 American undergraduates agreed that the United States “deserved” the 11 September attacks, while 72% disagreed and 6% were unsure. The finding has drawn attention to students’ views of the attacks, which killed nearly 3,000 people and took place before those surveyed were born.
The survey also found that 42% preferred socialism to 28% who preferred capitalism, the widest gap in five years of asking the question; 47% said Cuba and the Soviet Union offered a better economic model than the US, compared with 33% who favoured US capitalism. Palestine was named a better US ally than Israel by 38% to 25%, a nine-point shift away from Israel since last year. On other issues, 40% supported criminal prosecution for offensive speech, while 53% said transgender athletes competing in women’s sports would be unfair; the poll was conducted from 5 to 14 September and has a 3.5-point margin of error.
In short
- 22% of surveyed undergraduates said the US deserved 9/11.
- More students preferred socialism to capitalism, 42% to 28%.
- The survey also found shifts in views on Israel, speech and sport.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Some may argue that the finding reflects a minority of students expressing anger at US policies they see as contributing to violence, rather than approval of the killing of civilians; the poll alone does not show what respondents meant by “deserved”. Taking the result seriously could prompt discussion about how universities teach the attacks, US foreign policy and the distinction between condemning a government and blaming its people.
The case against
Others may argue that saying a country deserved 9/11 assigns collective blame for the deaths of nearly 3,000 people and risks excusing attacks on civilians, whatever one thinks of US policy. They may also caution that a poll response gives little context about students’ reasoning, but still regard the reported level of agreement as troubling and deserving scrutiny.
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