Six months later: Americans' surge of emotion after Sept. 11 attacks has leveled off

The caller is freaking out. He's fuming. The talk-radio host is egging him on.

Frank, the man on the telephone line, wants more soldiers guarding U.S. borders. He wants illegal immigration -- in fact, all immigration -- halted. He wishes Pat Buchanan were president. He thinks President Bush is soft on terrorism.

"What about air marshals?"he says. "Why don't we have armed air marshals on every flight? At the very least, pilots should be armed!"

A chorus of others call in to hold forth on the virtues of the Second Amendment. If Sept. 11 wasn't a call to every American to get armed, one says, then what was it?

This crowd's take may be extreme, but debate about the lasting impact of Sept. 11 is not exclusive to the AM dial.

Six months after the attacks on America -- six months after more than 3,000 people died at the hands of terrorists -- many Americans are still unsure what the long-term effects will be.

The world will never be the same, people said -- but how has it changed for the average American?

It was clear following the attacks that certain changes were imminent:

Although the war on terrorism is still a major undertaking, for many people the practical ramifications of Sept. 11 appear to be limited to longer lines at the airport and the presence of flags on car antennas.

"Life hasn't changed that much, really," UNLV student Dawn Irvine, 22, said. She was sitting in the student union building last week, wearing a sweater embroidered with the U.S. flag. "At first it seemed like we were more patriotic, and like everyone was worried about bombs or anthrax, but now it's kind of over ... It's still sad to remember it though. I will never forget it."

Across town, at Army-Navy 1, a small strip mall's military-surplus store packed with survival kits and camouflage pants, sales are down.

"I sold a lot of flags in October. I couldn't keep my flags in stock. We sold about 50 gas masks. But now things have changed," owner Dave Madison said.

"My best month ever was October. By November it just dropped. It was way down for Christmas. And January and February were very, very slow. We're just hanging on," Madison said. "I think people are still patriotic, it's just deep down inside.

"Lately there has been no preparedness. No one is buying the MREs (Meals Ready to Eat). I haven't sold any preparedness stuff since November."

In the back of the shop are T-shirts that say "Proud to be an American" -- now clearance priced at $12.99.

But the Rev. Thane Barnes, pastor of Green Valley Baptist Church, said the tragedy's lasting effects on the average person are more psychological and spiritual than tangible.

"It did change all of our lives." Barnes, whose congregation numbers 600, said. "But will the emotion still be as high? Will there be as many flags in the yards? No.

"Instead, what has stuck with people is that they are more aware of their own mortality. We don't live in this idealistic dreamworld that we thought we lived in."

After a surge of church attendance following Sept. 11, Las Vegas pastors report that by December the upswing was over.

Local Muslims, who spent the fall fielding questions about their faith, have receded from the headlines.

"I think Muslims are slowly returning to the way they were before Sept. 11, but they are still cautious," Khaja Misbahuddin, a local Muslim scholar, said.

But if the obvious, day-to-day effects of Sept. 11 have faded, the work behind the scenes is intensifying.

"Terrorism may not be the top subject with the public anymore, but I can tell you at Metro it is," Deputy Chief Bill Young said. "Law enforcement in Las Vegas has been changed forever as a result of 9-11."

"We've partnered with the federal government, and our intelligence unit has been re-crafted to focus more on anti-terrorist activity," Young, who leads the Special Operations Division, said.

"We've beefed up our manpower at the airport. We've purchased two bomb dogs. We've worked with hundreds of businesses on security, with Strip hotels, with many people who play key roles in the community -- large employers, infrastructure leaders, medical personnel.

"We realize that we are homeland defense.

"If something happens here, the Army Rangers aren't going to be here. Local law enforcement is the homeland defense," Young said.

"A lot of it we don't want the public to see, and we don't want to give the appearance of a police state," he added.

At McCarran International Airport, as at major airports across the country, the federal government has taken over security -- a move authorized by Congress after the attacks. Airport officials say that most passengers have been patient about the more thorough searches and luggage screening.

And Metro has transferred 12 officers to beef up its airport squad, Young said.

Metro also works closely with Bureau of Reclamation officials to maintain security at Hoover Dam, which was immediately closed after the terrorist attacks. The visitor center remained closed into October, and today, tours are limited and trucks are not allowed across. Security checkpoints are still operating on both sides of the dam.

"It took until December for us to re-open the power-plant tour," Colleen Dwyer, Bureau of Reclamation spokeswoman, said. "It's really a fairly abbreviated tour now. It's a small part of what people used to see.

"But we don't have any particular plans to change that. Most folks still say it's great and that they're happy we're protecting this resource. They understand that this is a special situation."

Such inconveniences seem minor when the federal government's larger plan to protect the nation from terrorism is considered.

Congress acted quickly to grant the Justice Department broader reach in obtaining information without search warrants -- a move aimed at tapping into terrorist communications. Civil libertarians opposed the measures, but the full effect on Americans' civil rights has yet to come to light.

The 2003 federal budget includes $37 billion for homeland security -- nearly twice this year's allotment. Part of that appropriation would include money to be funneled through the Federal Emergency Management Agency to local police and emergency personnel.

Another $5.9 billion would go to fight bioterrorism, and Bush wants $11 billion for border security.

But Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge is taking heat for the bureaucratic approach to the anti-terrorist mission: Critics say too many agencies are involved and not enough productive work has been done.

For example, Ridge's office is still in the preliminary stages of addressing the possibility of cyber-terrorists attacking computer systems at air control towers or power grids.

Efforts to refuel the economy also have hit rough spots. While initially the nation saw bipartisan support for post-Sept. 11 recovery efforts, Republicans and Democrats have returned to politics as usual -- going head to head on several issues such as judicial nominees and the economic stimulus plan.

In tourism-based Las Vegas, the economic downturn caused thousands to lose their jobs last fall. MGM MIRAGE, the largest hotel-casino owner on the Strip, laid off more than 6,400 people after tourism slowed as a result of Americans' post-Sept. 11 fear of flying.

Resort officials have worked with Metro to make sure security is up to par, Young said. In many cases, resorts have added security in the garages and towers.

MGM MIRAGE has re-hired about 2,000 laid-off workers.

Although economic experts say broad-scale recovery is under way in Las Vegas, it may be as long as a year before employment levels return to last summer's levels.

UNLV sociology professor Matt Wray said that an improving local economy may be the cause of some people's complacency about the ongoing war against terrorism.

"Tourism has returned, and there is some economic relief," Wray said. "And what most of us are concerned with is our day-to-day lives.

"For the vast majority of Americans, there is an apathetic, ho-hum feeling about the actions we're taking now in the international arena."

Barnes said that even as the economic impact begins to ease, the psychological is long-lasting.

"Sept. 11 really got people to think about their priorities and what's important to them. It got people thinking about their faith and family. That has had a lasting impact," Barnes said.

"I don't think people are forgetting. I don't think they will ever forget. It will be a landmark that we will always mark time by."

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