Following 9/11, Americans had a heightened sense of alertness. At that point, the style of news coverage shifted, dramatically. Updates scrolled across screens as the main stories were relayed by reporters.
What we, as citizens, were supposed to do in response to those danger alerts was unclear. Wear a bullet proof vest on the days that the alert was orange or red? Look closer at other travelers on the train? Prepare a will?
Still, we were on alert, even if that simply meant ... aware, and nervous that "something could happen."
As time distanced us from the 9/11 attacks, the sense of concern that another attack like that could happen seemed to dissipate.
With the Boston Marathon bombing, subsequent death of one suspect and capture of another and most recently the arrest of three college students, terrorism is front and center again. Television news has been filled with constant updates about the Boston Marathon bombing and concern surrounding other terrorism from within and outside of our country.
A speech by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell following the bombing prompted the Washington Post to ask whether we have become to complacent about the risks posed by terrorism.
Given the events following the April 15 bombing, where Americans were attacked on their own soil again, has your concern about terrorism been reawakened? Do you think Americans had become complacent prior to the Boston Marathon attacks? What does it even mean, for you, to not be complacent?
Please share your thoughts with us in the comments section.