We can no longer afford our ignorance of world conflicts. The first purpose of talking about the hijackers' motivations is not to put a value judgment on American foreign policy in the Middle East; it's to say that our first step is access to the information that will allow us as a people to consider that judgment. Now, more than ever, we have a right to demand that information of our elected officials and of the free press, because we have likely experienced casualties as a result of our foreign policy.

Certainly the concept of total war is deplorable. Can we now, having been the recipients of this horror, examine the concept as a whole, including our own actions? To us, our bombings of Afghanistan, Iraq, the Sudan and other countries may pale by comparison, but they are seen by many in the world as illegal acts of terrorism. Shouldn't we know this, if we are to oppose terrorism?

The day of the hijackings I watched a local high school student say on television, 'I don't understand why anyone would want to bomb America.' This is the exact question that must enter the public debate if we are to understand and fight world terrorism. It is essential that we as a people, and the media that control our access to information, at least entertain the idea that the reasons for the attack are a relevant piece of information.

The murder of thousands of workers is an atrocity and must be denounced around the world as such. The pain we have all experienced in the aftermath of the hijackings has made terrorism real to many people for the first time. And certainly any murder of innocent civilians by acts of terrorism perpetrated by any government, including our own, should be regarded as acts perpetuating the cycle of world terrorism and violence.

That the way to fight terrorism might not be solely based on tighter security is a valid viewpoint. Reducing the likelihood of future terrorism must become more important than any need to dominate, which is of course one source of world violence. It may be difficult now, in the process of grieving, to step back and see that larger picture. But the months ahead provide a unique opportunity for citizens to demand that America change its diplomacy.

This is not protectionism or isolationism; it is simply a more honest way of approaching our global community. As our media's focus on body counts, retaliation, rubble and airport security gradually pulls back to the larger issues at work, will we ask the important questions about how we got here?

John Colburn lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

© Copyright 2001 Star Tribune

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