Most Important Events In Recent History

I believe that the most important event in recent U.S. history is the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and The Pentagon. The events of September 11 jettisoned the United States into a war it cannot win with the brute force tactics the current administration is using to stop terrorism. The events have led to conflicts in Afghanistan and in Iraq and there will most likely be more conflicts in the future.
Gas prices have gone up due to conflict sparked by the actions of our government creating an energy crisis in America, also leading to more conflict as we fight over oil and other natural resources. It has caused religious turmoil leading to more religious based conflict since the crusades, an event that seems to be repeating itself because of Mr. Bush's views on handling the global war on terrorism. Airports are a hassle to get through and cause more trouble than good. Islam has been labeled an evil religion hell-bent on destroying "the American way" when this is just a fallacy put into the minds by the propaganda spewing out of conservative media.
The state of affairs in the world appear to be on a sharp decline down a dangerous slope starting on 9/11 and continue on today as more and more of the country's resources are put into global conflict.
The country's deficit has nearly doubled and we have put ourselves in a position as the sole defenders of the world.
According to a study done by the American Psychological Association many Americans are still feeling the mental effects of September 11. According to the study 40% of Americans say their lives were seriously affected by the attacks of September 11. Nearly 25% of all Americans say they are now more anxious and depressed due to September 11, this in an already psychologically unstable society that in my opinion will eventually be the downfall of America along with stupid people, but that is an argument for another
time.
America has been presented with a problem, and there are many paths we can take as recourse to said problem, however we have chosen the dark and violent path that must get much, much worse before it can get better. If we continue on this path we must face many more hurdles and problems before we can overcome the issue, whether or not the administration has the ability to do it short of nuclear war is yet to be seen, but the sad truth is that no one in the United States is unaffected by the events of 9/11. From complaining about gas prices going up to astronomical levels or the latest casualty reports form Iraq we see no one can escape the effects of 9/11 and in my opinion that is what the terrorists wanted and it appears that they have succeeded. We felt the cause years ago and now 6 years later we are feeling the effects.
Only time will tell whether or not we can recover from the effects of radical Islam's attack on the United States and the governments poor management of the situation, but the country as it is today is in a sad shape all due to the fact that on September 11 we were attacked and we didn't do the right thing to handle it and we are now paying for that mistake with men and money.