“We have intercepted electronic communication indicating that al-Qaeda members are actively plotting to stay out of the way while America as we know it gradually crumbles under the weight of its own self-inflicted debt and disrepair,” FBI Deputy Director Mark F. Giuliano told the assembled press corps. “If this plan succeeds, it will leave behind a nation with a completely dysfunctional economy, collapsing infrastructure, and a catastrophic health crisis afflicting millions across the nation. We want to emphasize that this danger is very real.”
I think it was the crashing of our economy that allowed the holding companies and hedge funds to buy up more stock, then Alan Greenspan deciding to set interest rates at 0 to boost the economy, which was a huge factor in creating the housing bubble, that really fucked us.
Mass surveillance certainly didn’t help, but 9/11 also brought out the beginnings of the “America First, fuck you I got my big diesel truck with flags all over it” crowd too. Wait I mean patriots.