Almost 10 years after 9/11, 71 percent of Americans believe there is more hatred toward the United States around the world than ever before and 84 percent say they expect another foreign terror attack on U.S. soil within the next decade, according to a recent Harris poll.
The fears are documented in an online poll of 2,073 adults surveyed August 23-25 by Harris Interactive. The Harris poll shows that 32 percent of Americans are more concerned today than they were 10 years ago about their personal safety; and 57 percent said their level of concern is about the same as it was before the assaults on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
Concerns about safety, however, are not focused entirely on the potential for another attack from a foreign individual or group. According to the survey, 79 percent of Americans are worried about attacks from U.S. citizens.
The FBI and CIA led the pack in terms of which agency has done the best job of protecting the country. Of those surveyed, 81 percent credited the FBI with doing the best job and 79 percent credited the CIA.
Fifty-five percent of the respondents also gave former President George W. Bush either a lot or some credit for helping to reduce terrorism, while 48 percent felt that President Barack Obama had done his best
In terms of what more can be done to prevent terrorist acts, most Americans — 86 percent — would like to see expanded undercover activities aimed at penetrating suspicious groups; 70 percent want more public surveillance on the streets; 65 percent favor tighter banking and credit transactions; 61 percent want a national identification system for all U.S. citizens; and 55 percent want stronger Internet monitoring.
The Harris poll also discovered that nearly every American adult, 95 percent, remembers where they were when they heard about the 9/11 attacks. Of those, 68 percent said the events that day changed their behavior “in some lasting way.”
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