If 9/11 were to happen again, it would not take the same form. The United States has evolved, and so have our enemies.
When the most significant terrorist attacks on U.S. soil occurred 22 years ago, communications were grounded to a halt. Cell towers were destroyed, and so were switching equipment for landline phones. People formed long lines outside pay phone booths in New York City, hoping to connect with their loved ones.
Today, America’s infrastructure has grown robust enough to survive similar attacks as 9/11, but there are new vulnerabilities.
“Imagine what is possible if the CCP [Chinese Communist Party] hacks our grid,” House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) asked, referring to the electricity network, during a hearing in July.
The congresswoman asked the question based on an earlier report (pdf) by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence that identified China as “almost certainly capable” of launching cyberattacks that could disrupt U.S. critical infrastructure services.
“They could shut down power to key national security facilities, like military bases; they could prevent power from getting to hospitals, cause widespread blackouts, and prevent critical energy resources from getting to the people who need them most,” Ms. Rodgers added.
The hearing happened just a week after Chinese hackers breached the email accounts of a group of senior U.S. officials, including Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, whose department has curbed the CCP’s access to advanced semiconductor equipment and technology—a key gateway to Chinese communist leader Xi Jinping’s ambition for global dominance—via a series of export controls.
Space Wars and Earth Wars
The attack on 9/11 was an example of unconventional warfare. Before that, the United States considered protecting from invasions outside the border, such as a bomb or nuclear missile, said Antonio Graceffo, a China analyst and an Epoch Times contributor. Instead, 9/11 revealed that lethal threats could be launched from within the country, he added.
While new defense fronts might be opening on the grounds of cyberattacks, artificial intelligence, and other means that can “cause general chaos and havoc in the United States,” he said Russia’s invasion of Ukraine showed the world the danger of conventional warfare hasn’t subsided.
By Terri Wu
