I would add that although 3000 people dying isn't that significant in the grand scheme of things, especially when related to diseases, accidents, etc. like you mentioned, there is a big difference in that all of these people were innocent victims. Diseases like cancer and heart disease, car accidents/drunk driving, though tragic and greater in numbers, tend to point some blame from a minor to major ways in most cases. You have lung cancer? Maybe you shouldn't have smoked 3 packs every day for 30 years. Heart disease, lay off the twinkies you fat fuck.

Granted there are probably some (many) cases where these tradgedies occur to zero fault of the victim but I'd bet in most cases there is at least some underlying cause holding these victims accountable, something you really can't say for the victimis of 9/11.

It why we have a debate whenever a school shooting occurs killing children. Grand scheme of things sure, barely any kids are killed in mass shootings, but as a society we value the lives of the innocent much, much more and as well the lives of the young.

I think in most scenarios most of us would agree with this sentiment that the young and innocent take precedent over the old and often sinful, that their lives don't have the same worth in this context, though I don't think anyone knows by how much or even how much it should be when trying to justifying and quantifying risky policy decisions.

At the same time people are complaining about how the Iraq/Afghanistan war was so horrible, riddled us with debt, killed thousands of soldiers, etc. I'd argue that this is the same sensationalism as what got us in the war in the first place.

Currently the U.S. is over 19 trillion in debt, only of which 1.7 trillion is in all of the wars since 2000. To keep things in perspective, the rest of the debt is mainly social programs essentially caring for what I'd consider the guilty (at least in most cases these aren't people without any vice), fat, sick, old, and poor (not everybody is a bum, I know). Social security for people currently getting money out of it, and those who put into it since the very beginning are capable of making the equivalent of a 5% rate of return on their investment. The thing is this money wasn't invested into anything that actually became value, or was it even stored away to be used for later. Our debt is literally giving money to old people who didn't plan properly and need more since they live too long and retired to early and have complex medical problems since they didn't take care of themselves.

If you analyze what young people (myself) are likely to get on their investment into social security, considering the retirement age will be raised and our benefits cut, its going to be on the order of 2%. Granted interests rates are shit right now so no point in saving, but 2% ror on a stock hardly qualifies as a worthwhile investment even in todays market.

Sorry for the winded post, I just like to bring some perspective to people who complain the innocent who died in 9/11 wasn't enough to warrant a war but then continue to say that the 6000 americans who signed up to join the military was the biggest travesty as well as the (reletively) insignificant debt accrued from the process in general. I don't believe the war was necessarily America's best option, or that it was executed properly, or even sought through to the end, but to this day people still complain that it was such a mistake as if it was/is our number 1 concern (didn't fix terror, caused too much debt) when at the same time our country is literally raising its debt because we can barely pay the interest on our debt because a generation of entitled baby boomers decided they would tax their children and pass it down the road.

Also the billionaires, don't forget the billionaires.