Question 1

The United States, after winning wars (such as World War I and II), quickly demobilized the military.

Accepted Answer

After both World War I and World War II, the United States rapidly reduced its military forces in a process known as demobilization, reflecting a return to its traditional peacetime stance and a public desire to reduce military spending and focus on domestic issues.

Question 2

The Pendulum Effect states that
A) if governmental decisions are made at a high enough level, the spin of the political world will create an effect that would not have resulted from the decision itself.
B) terrorist attacks come in waves, like the graph of a pendulum's motion.
C) terrorists have a hypnotic effect on government that forces them to take severe actions that only create more terrorists.
D) an entity will alternate between extremes when pushed one way or the other.

Accepted Answer

The Pendulum Effect refers to the tendency of an entity (such as political opinions, market trends, or social behaviors) to swing between extremes, similar to how a pendulum swings from one side to the other when pushed.

Question 3

Previous to 9/11, how was terrorism executed?
A) Terrorism was random, occurred mostly overseas, was infrequent and if it happened an agency would respond, and justice would be served.
B) Terrorism previous to 9/11 was mostly from separatist movements such as the IRA because religious terror had not yet come into existence.
C) Terrorism was executed by a few consistent groups, but it was nothing compared to the scaling threat of terrorism that we now face.
D) Acts of terror were committed against other Western civilizations that were closer to the Middle East.

Accepted Answer

Before 9/11, terrorism was often perceived as random, infrequent, and mostly occurring overseas, with responses typically involving law enforcement and justice systems.

Question 4

What happened to the Hart-Rudman commission?
A) The commission found that few security holes were present and was later blamed for not warning anyone about 9/11.
B) As is often the case in Washington when faced with difficult problems, the commission was created, studied the issues and made recommendations that then died.
C) They recommended the PATRIOT Act, but the bill was extremely unpopular until after 9/11.
D) They found a few reforms to make and these reforms were implemented, but they did not go far enough.

Accepted Answer

The Hart-Rudman Commission, officially known as the U.S. Commission on National Security/21st Century, was established to evaluate national security issues for the 21st century. After extensive study, it made several recommendations. However, like many such commissions, its recommendations largely did not lead to immediate action or were not implemented before significant events, such as the 9/11 attacks, underscored some of the vulnerabilities it had identified.

Question 5

How were efforts by Al Gore treated to reform the Federal Aviation Administration to tighten up security?
A) Most legislators were concerned about Al Gore's environmental platform and refused to pass his bills because of it.
B) The intense lobbying by the airline industry and Linda Daschle, wife of then Senate Majority Leader, Tom Daschle made sure his reforms were not implemented.
C) U.S. Citizens were concerned about their freedom and privacy when traveling and valued that over safety and security.
D) They passed the reforms but most governmental agencies are ineffective anyways and this did not change that.

Accepted Answer

The intense lobbying by the airline industry and Linda Daschle, who was the wife of then Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, played a significant role in ensuring that Al Gore's efforts to reform the Federal Aviation Administration for tighter security were not implemented. This lobbying effort is a classic example of how industry interests can influence legislative outcomes.

Question 6

Lawrence Wright in his book, The Looming Tower, asserts that the Sudanese minister of state for defense, Major General Elfatih Erwa met with the American ambassador to Sudan, Timothy Carney, and offered to hand bin Laden over to the United States. His offer was declined.

Accepted Answer

In "The Looming Tower," Lawrence Wright details how Major General Elfatih Erwa, the Sudanese minister of state for defense, offered to hand Osama bin Laden over to the United States during a meeting with the American ambassador to Sudan, Timothy Carney, but the United States declined the offer.

Question 7

Before 9/11, with the 1990s approach, most of our concerns were with limited terrorist attacks in the United States, while most of the authorities' focus was on overseas bombings and airplane hijackings.

Accepted Answer

Before the 9/11 attacks, the primary focus of U.S. counterterrorism efforts was on responding to and preventing overseas terrorist incidents, including bombings and airplane hijackings, rather than anticipating large-scale terrorist attacks on the U.S. mainland.

Question 8

When terrorists were apprehended either in the United States or abroad in the 1990s, they were
A) accorded the treatment of any other criminal defendant, including receiving warnings about the right to silence, and a full-blown criminal jury trial.
B) subject to advanced interrogation techniques to ensure and preserve the safety and freedom of American citizens.
C) usually treated as enemy combatants and were tried by a military tribunal.
D) executed without question.

Accepted Answer

In the 1990s, terrorists apprehended either in the United States or abroad were treated like any other criminal defendant, which included receiving warnings about the right to silence and the right to a full-blown criminal jury trial. This approach was consistent with the U.S. legal system's principles and the rights afforded to defendants under the U.S. Constitution.

Question 9

What did David Johnson say the government did when it needed more police or investigative efforts?
A) The government would use the existing agencies and give them new assignments and additional funding.
B) David Johnson believes that the agencies "evolved" with new mission statements, and their evolution sort of modeled scientific theories of evolution.
C) It was haphazard with federal agencies creating a police force only when it became abundantly clear one was needed.
D) An investigative task force with no funding or staff would be created and placed under the responsibility of a larger agency and would later be closed once it outlived its usefulness.

Accepted Answer

The answer of What did David Johnson say the government...

Question 10

The Department of Defense essentially was homeland security before 9/11.

Accepted Answer

The Department of Defense is primarily responsible for military operations and national defense, while homeland security focuses on protecting the U.S. from domestic threats and emergencies. The Department of Homeland Security was established after 9/11 to specifically address these issues.

Question 11

Which of the following highlights a way that 9/11 could have been prevented?
A) Weapons could have been allowed on planes so that passengers would not be unarmed in the case of a terrorist hijacking.
B) The reason the terrorists used planes was because they were cheap. Airline fees could have been raised and it most likely would have costed too much.
C) 9/11 was completely unpreventable and the terrorists would have found some way or another to blow up the World Trade Center.
D) 9/11 could have been prevented if the CIA, FBI, and National Security Agency had worked together and shared information.

Accepted Answer

The correct answer is D because prior to the 9/11 attacks, there were significant intelligence failures and a lack of interagency communication among the CIA, FBI, and NSA. Improved collaboration and information sharing among these agencies could have potentially prevented the attacks.

Question 12

How was FEMA used during the Oklahoma City Bombing?
A) A national emergency was declared as it was a property for which the federal government had responsibility and this placed FEMA in charge of disaster relief.
B) It wasn't, and a controversy started because of it. More could have been done in the aftermath, and FEMA could have helped.
C) FEMA was present, but just like in the hurricane Katrina cleanup, they weren't able to do their job because they didn't know what it was.
D) FEMA tried to help but was ultimately unneeded.

Accepted Answer

FEMA was activated following the Oklahoma City Bombing because it was an attack on a federal building, making it a matter of federal responsibility. This allowed FEMA to step in and coordinate disaster relief efforts.

Question 13

FEMA was generally regarded as a successful agency before the events of 9/11.

Accepted Answer

Before 9/11, FEMA was considered effective, particularly after its response to natural disasters like Hurricane Andrew in 1992, but its reputation declined after the 2005 Hurricane Katrina response.

Question 14

Why were the 9/11 plane hijackings successful?
A) Passengers on three of the flights were docile; they no doubt assumed it would be an unpleasant and uncomfortable hijacking, not realizing they were going to die.
B) They told the passengers they could have one last call home before they died and it satisfied most people.
C) Airport security unintentionally allowed the terrorists to bring bombs on the planes that kept passengers from trying to stop the airplane.
D) Politicians in Washington delayed the process of meeting the demands of the terrorists, and it resulted in devastation.

Accepted Answer

The hijackers of the 9/11 planes were able to take control largely because passengers and crew, following common advice and assumptions of the time, were initially docile, believing they were involved in a traditional hijacking scenario where compliance would likely lead to a safe outcome. This mindset delayed any immediate attempt to overpower the hijackers, under the assumption that the situation would eventually be resolved without loss of life.

Question 15

9/11 was treated as a criminal attack and prosecuted, but would also be the opening salvo in war or wars fought to a conclusion.

Accepted Answer

The answer of 9/11 was treated as a criminal attack...

Question 16

What is the problem with a governmental overreaction to terrorism?
A) Agencies are created that want to continue existing even when they are no longer necessary and they stress the threat to increase funds and personnel.
B) Overreactions to terrorism are usually inclined to give too many freedoms to the people in exchange for removing security.
C) The government is amassing a huge national debt and trying to solve terrorism problems only makes it worse.
D) The United States has become almost completely militarized and is too focused on gun ownership.

Accepted Answer

The answer of What is the problem with a governmental...

Question 17

What is the government able to do as dictated by Section 215 and Section 206 of the Patriot act?
A) The government can incentivize the deployment of new and innovative anti-terrorism technologies by providing liability protections to companies whose products or services have successfully passed DHS review.
B) They can authorize cybersecurity attacks and the military has been drafting cyber rules of engagement.
C) They can gather any tangible thing pertinent to a terrorism investigation and are allowed roving wiretaps that permitted the government to obtain intelligence surveillance orders that identify neither the person nor the facility.
D) The United States has become almost completely militarized and is too focused on gun ownership.

Accepted Answer

Section 215 of the Patriot Act allows the government to gather any tangible things pertinent to a terrorism investigation, and Section 206 permits roving wiretaps, which allow surveillance orders that do not specify a person or facility.

Question 18

What did Secretary of State Colin Powell argue before the United Nations Security Council about in regards to Iraq?
A) Colin Powell said that there was no need to invade Iraq because there was clear evidence that Iraq did not have WMDs.
B) He said that it might be necessary to ensure the freedom of the people of Iraq and to support a Democratic government in the Middle East so that we might have some allies there.
C) He said that it was a hostile regime that might share its weapons of mass destruction (which everyone believed Iraq possessed including) with terrorists.
D) Fearing for the lives of American troops, he said that we should not risk sending military in because the war that would follow simply couldn't be worth it.

Accepted Answer

Colin Powell argued before the United Nations Security Council that Iraq was a hostile regime that might share its weapons of mass destruction with terrorists, which was a key part of the justification for the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Question 19

What is the difference between antiterrorism and counterterrorism?
A) Antiterrorism refers to the funds used to combat terrorism and counterterrorism describes the organizations that work to prevent and stop terrorism, whether it is currently taking place or will in the future.
B) Antiterrorism is defined by actively pursuing and neutralizing terrorists and groups, counterterrorism is passive measures attempting to prevent it.
C) Antiterrorism refers to feelings people have about terrorism (specifically those opposed to terrorism), and counterterrorism is defined by the people that are stopping it.
D) Antiterrorism is defined by passive measures attempting to prevent terrorism, counterterrorism is actively pursuing and neutralizing terrorists and groups.

Accepted Answer

Antiterrorism involves defensive measures used to reduce the vulnerability to terrorist acts, such as security protocols and public awareness campaigns. Counterterrorism, on the other hand, involves offensive measures aimed at preventing, deterring, and responding to terrorism, including intelligence operations and military actions.

Question 20

Conducting threat assessments, planning, and employing security measures are examples of
A) counterterrorism.
B) passive actions to reduce the likelihood of an attack.
C) information sharing in governmental agencies.
D) actively pursuing and neutralizing terrorists and groups.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Conducting threat assessments, planning, and employing security...

Quiz 11: Homeland Security: Before and After 9/11

The United States, after winning wars (such as World War I and II), quickly demobilized the military.

The Pendulum Effect states that

Previous to 9/11, how was terrorism executed?

What happened to the Hart-Rudman commission?

How were efforts by Al Gore treated to reform the Federal Aviation Administration to tighten up security?

Lawrence Wright in his book, The Looming Tower, asserts that the Sudanese minister of state for defense, Major General Elfatih Erwa met with the American ambassador to Sudan, Timothy Carney, and offered to hand bin Laden over to the United States. His offer was declined.

Before 9/11, with the 1990s approach, most of our concerns were with limited terrorist attacks in the United States, while most of the authorities' focus was on overseas bombings and airplane hijackings.

When terrorists were apprehended either in the United States or abroad in the 1990s, they were

What did David Johnson say the government did when it needed more police or investigative efforts?

The Department of Defense essentially was homeland security before 9/11.

Which of the following highlights a way that 9/11 could have been prevented?

How was FEMA used during the Oklahoma City Bombing?

FEMA was generally regarded as a successful agency before the events of 9/11.

Why were the 9/11 plane hijackings successful?

9/11 was treated as a criminal attack and prosecuted, but would also be the opening salvo in war or wars fought to a conclusion.

What is the problem with a governmental overreaction to terrorism?

What is the government able to do as dictated by Section 215 and Section 206 of the Patriot act?

What did Secretary of State Colin Powell argue before the United Nations Security Council about in regards to Iraq?

What is the difference between antiterrorism and counterterrorism?

Conducting threat assessments, planning, and employing security measures are examples of