Another day, another wajihoodlum (wannabi+jihadi+hoodlum=wajihoodlum) does something stupid. This time, the clown aimed for New York and tried to blow up a car in Times Square. While I’m glad that he did not succeed, I am also oddly glad that it happened in New York. I was in that area of town shortly before the event in question. I could have been a victim had the plan worked. But the reality is that New Yorkers do not scare.
Mayor Bloomberg said, “This was an act designed to kill innocent civilians and strike fear into the hearts of Americans, and I’m happy to say that it failed on both counts. We will not be intimidated by those who hate the freedoms that make the city and this country so great.” This no-fear attitude of New Yorkers rubbed off on tourists visiting Times Square, who felt more inconvenienced than afraid.
If you accept the fact that terrorists hate what America stands for, there is a reason they are fascinated with New York. We represent the best of America. People of different races, faiths, social standings, all intermix and build a community together. There is reason to believe that one of the first people to report the suspicious vehicle was a Muslim, who emigrated from Senegal. I remember returning to New York from Boston after 9/11. The fact that I was a New Yorker trumped any other identification I had — both race and religion. It was understood that I shared in the grief of the city and was committed to rebuilding. I also remember the city being one of the least fear-filled places in the country after the attack on the Twin Towers.
The goal of terrorists is not to kill, but to cause terror, and have us destroy ourselves. We have already moved on and not given in to the primary goal of terrorists. People may still be worried about some guy’s dirty underwear, but we will have forgotten this ever happened by the end of summer. We do not scare, and that’s why New York is the worst possible target for these wajihoodlums.
