How would Americans react if terrorists blew up a large bank?
Americans clearly identified with the victims of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. When the giant World Trade Center towers collapsed into piles of flames and ashes, Americans knew at a gut level that this was an attack against all Americans. We mourned all the victims and we were willing to risk many lives and immense amounts of money to retaliate against the aggressors.
Fast forward to the present day. It has become clear that Goldman Sachs has corrupted Congress with a steady diet of campaign contributions in order to circumvent the financial well-being of American citizens. This includes using its powerful influence over Congress to destroy desperately needed financial regulations that, years ago, prevented large banks from endangering the American economy. Consider also that Goldman Sachs has repeatedly manipulated the market for its own benefit to the detriment of honest investors. Rolling Stone’s Matt Tabbi summed up the purpose and achievements of Goldman Sachs as follows:
The first thing you need to know about Goldman Sachs is that it’s everywhere. The world’s most powerful investment bank is a great vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity, relentlessly jamming its blood funnel into anything that smells like money . . . [Goldman Sachs uses] the same playbook over and over again. The formula is relatively simple: Goldman positions itself in the middle of a speculative bubble, selling investments they know are crap. Then they hoover up vast sums from the middle and lower floors of society with the aid of a crippled and corrupt state that allows it to rewrite the rules in exchange for the relative pennies the bank throws at political patronage. Finally, when it all goes bust, leaving millions of ordinary citizens broke and starving, they begin the entire process over again, riding in to rescue us all by lending us back our own money at interest, selling themselves as men above greed, just a bunch of really smart guys keeping the wheels greased. They’ve been pulling this same stunt over and over since the 1920s.
Consider this hypothetical: Given the fact that the modus operandi of Goldman Sachs has now become better known, how would modern day Americans react if terrorists destroyed the New Jersey headquarters of Goldman Sachs?
This hypothetical raises a number of compelling questions, including each of the following:
- To what extent would America be angry about this attack?
- To what extent would America mourn?
- To what extent would Americans consider this to be an attack “on America”?
- To what extent would the public insist on expensive and bloody retribution?
- To what extent would Americans applaud this act of terrorism?
- What would Americans think of this attack if it were discovered that the attack had been planned and conducted by Caucasian middle-aged Americans, none of them having any sort of criminal record, all of whom having lost their jobs or retirement savings due to the actions of Goldman Sachs?
