Definitly a terrorist attack.
The United States have aggrevated the prolem so much and also the citizens of many countries that got involved, in my case Italy, had no say in beng involved. They always target theinnocent and not those responsible.
I fear all travel.

Personally I fear a recession the most. Probably because there is a greater chance than me or someone close to me will be affected by it.
On the other hand, terrorism, as horrible as it is will most likely wont affect me, and if it does to some extent, as long as I don’t die I will be able to recover in a short term, and live my life as it was.
A recession will be far more hurtful to the majority of Americans and the world, in addition jobs will be lost, prices will go up and people in the third world will starve to death.
A recession will affect the American way of life more than terrorism will ever do.
Maybe I am wrong, but I think Americans can endure terrorism more than an economic recession.

Recession is far worse for the average person. The cameraman had the right approach, of objectively weighing up both sides, rather than reflexively giving the answer the media and quite a few politicians seem to be pushing.

Also, and I could be completely wrong here, isn’t it true more people die, worldwide, from accidental drowning in bath tubs than from terrorist attacks?

Human fear is irrational though. It is accepted that more people die from dog attacks than snake attacks, but fear of snakes is almost universally higher than fear of dogs.

I guess fear of terrorism is similar to fear of snakes - it’s one of the many irrational elements of human behaviour. Good blog post, though.

Due to the Bush administration, I think that both terrorism and recession are very likely. Bush has done nothing to make the world a safer place to live in. He has also put the USA into massive debt, destroyed the US dollar and put the USA into recession. Bush has made the US a much worse place to live in. Now we have McCain, who will more or less, follow in Bush’s footsteps. The US is in trouble.

Recession is a form of terrorism. The few who have a lot of money keep making more and more, while the rest of the people suffer greatly! “Average” Americans are now terrified that they will not be able to keep their jobs - and the cost of getting to work and feeding a family are forcing many to make extreme sacrifices. The rich people who are artifically raising the price of fuel (to make themselves richer) are equal to terrorists! Think about that…

I fear recession more than terrorism. And it’s not like I live in a remote location where I can feel hidden. I live in London, and before that I lived in New York City and Chicago. Still, I fear a recession more than being a victim of a terror attack.

It’s a matter of mathematics and statistics. More people will be impacted by a recession than a series of terror attacks. And yes, while being a terror victim could mean death, a recession means certain and painful economic reality alive.

Shaloom:

I’m an American citizen living in Jerusalem.

In answer to your question, the recession, obviously.

On The Cognitive level(s), mans two major economies are collapsing, as the G-9 follows, as all NOW need the NEW economic paradigm, that REPLACES the old model of ‘division of labor,’ to attain the NEW world economy’s NEW world class ‘international content’ operationally as its new Global Technologic Infrastructure-GTI, that devolves and becomes the Internet 3 model, ONLY when based on Humanomics NEW economic paradigm…

SOLUTION – old ‘division of labor’ model is REPLACED with the NEW economic paradigm model, that is the “Integration of Labor-sm,” in the G-9 first, and subsequently globally in all the world’s economies, delivering the positive effect(s) of globalization.

As it’s author, I’m shocked how little the media is doing to ask the big questions and DEMAND coherent and clear macro solution(s), as without such solution(s) one or the other does NOT deserve to be elected, perhaps both, if neither has the answer(s) nor advisers who can provide such answers for them.

Shalom, Yehoshua

I fear terrorism more than a recession. Even though I believe America is headed for recession, terrorism is a greater evil in the world than economic despair. I was a block away from one of the London underground bombings on July 7, 2005 but this event did not solely influence me in why I believe terrorism is more fearful than recession. Terrorism does not directly effect everyone but indirectly it affects all. Terrorism affects America as a whole as does recession but terrorism is a global issue; recession is not. Terrorists from many countries in the world have DECLARED WAR against America and the West. They [terrorists] seek our destruction, which I believe poses more of a threat than a recession ever could. America will unite to fight against recession if we ever fall into it. We are the United States of America. We will stand strong together. We must stay strong and united against terrorism as it poses more of a dire threat to not only America, but the whole free world.

Linda, wake up. If the USA didn’t take the leadership position in it’s fight against terrorism since 2001, no one would and the Mouslim radicals would be running Italy and most other western nations. I realize the western liberal press and readers will jump all over me but look at the facts, not what the press leads you to believe, but the real facts. And as far as the question goes. Recession is the big one here as we are taking the leadership in the fight against terrorism.

Ray

Well, at first intance I thought this question doesn’t make sense, but after reading the whole blog. I would definately fear recession more than anything.
As I am an overseas student in UK. My university fees are going up each year, but this time as dollar is going down and economy of deveopling countries are hit by recession, it has been really hard for my parents to pay for my tution fees.
I think I am already target of recession as my working hours are being cut by the retail store I work for, the reason they give is there is not enough sale.

The government wants us to fear things, that is how they can control us, take away our freedoms, and become more powerful. The likelihood that anyone in the US will be involved in a terrorist attack is so tiny, that it isn’t even worth thinking about - it is more likely that you will win a multi-million dollar lottery. While a recession is definitely more likely to affect each of us, but we should be working towards correcting it not fearful that it might come. Fear makes us freeze from action, but that is not what America or humans are all about. We move forward, we progress, and we do it regardless of the fact that we don’t control much of our world or even our lives. Don’t fear the world, be apart of the world. Live your life with sincerity, with humor, and with laughter because that is what matters the most. Not wasting valuable time and energy worrying about what could possibly, maybe some day, if the stars are perfectly aligned happen.

I’m not so sure that is a sensible question.
If I asked you - presuming you’re healthy - what you fear more: a recession or a heart-attack, you’d probably say a recession. Yet your chance of getting a heart_attack is much more likely than getting in- volved in a terrorist-one

I fear a recession more. Especially considering it won’t just affect America, it will affect the entire western economy. Then how will we finance any struggles against terror?

I fear recession more. Terrorism is usually sensational, and good business for media outlets like cnn, -people are curious and that means ads. But recession has no sensation involved. And recession in a socially unbalanced country will also mean rise in crime. In capitalism, recession can quickly lead to chaos. California is robbing highway tax dollars (which could pay for new busses) to pay for govt officers and police and the like. A thoughtful centrally planned economy would realize that this is not the time to cut busses and trains, -but a capitalist democracy is not very thoughtful. So, people hurt more, the recession bites more, and quality of life goes down. And there is no one you can shoot at to feel good. Terrorism, on the other hand, is easy, -you go and bomb someone and you feel good

I fear a terrorist attack more. Being poor I could recover from (hopefully), but losing the people I love would devestate me and I would never recover from that. I could not even think of losing my husband or children. I live in the middle east but feel that terrorist now attack anywhere not just America or UK. So their are more terrorists around and the chances go up for anyone in any country to be killed or maimed.

Am here in London and fear recession,i dont want to loose ma job and home,

I definetly fear recession more. Terrorism, as awful and devastating as it is, is not as common and usually does not have as far reaching an effect as recession does. Recession happens in one place, its bound to spread to other places and it affects the lives of nearly every person living in the suffering location.

Neither. We will get over a recession, and terrorism is not nearly as dangerous as road traffic.

I fear global warming.

I’m a psychologist and what I fear is what we do not fear but should. We fear what was a danger to us at the time of our evolution, but little else. For example, even if we know a particular snake is harmless, it still gives most of us the creeps. That there is more CO2 in the air than ever before in 800,000 years, though, that remains rather abstract for us. We understand, but still hope the price of oil will go down so that we can fill up again.

I think it wouldn’t be inaccurate to say that the ripple effect of economic woes would cause far more deaths due to suicide, crime and poverty stemming from a recession than the casualty count of an average-scale terrorist attack.

I fear a recession the most definetely. I already know several people that are beginning to feel the paining failure of the housing sector in addition to the continous rise of the price of oil.
Worrying about terrorism is silly and useless since no government on Earth can really do anything to appease it or prevent it. In addition, terrorists no longer have any real reason to attack us anymore simply because of our failures in Iraq and Afghanistan. To think there are crazy “evil” men out there sitting in caves plotting to destroy our civilization because they “hate freedom” is not only naive but stupid. It’s completely foreign policy based, and now that our military failure in the Middle East is becoming more apparent, their reasons to attack us have come to a decline.
Americans need to wake up and start thinking about issues that actually matter; like our economy, future city planning, education systems, inflation, housing, and credit security. The silly issues voters cared about in the very recent past (abortion, terrorism, war, etc..) are finally starting to disappear as a fairly obvious more ominous danger in economy begins to show its ugly face. Recession is upon us, wake up and deal with it.

Very intriguing question, which makes me want to share an observation with my fellow readers.

Whenever terrorism is talked about Madrid, London and NY takes center stage and terrorism events in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Indonesia (all Muslim countries) are mentioned as OTHERS.

9/11 events and following US reaction has caused deaths of over 1 million civilians in last seven years. But what seems to matter to people here is only the people who have died in US, London or Madrid.

This observation makes me feel equally sad for people in US, Europe and people living in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. We are becoming more and more incapable for feeling the pain of humanity because of this polarization.

I don’t fear either.

What I do fear is the ignorance and arrogance of governments, corporations and special interest groups.

We live in a dysfunctional world.

Recession.

The risk from terrorism is totally overblown - and in the UK at least, is used as a pretext for all kinds of unpleasant stuff.

Both, for Heaven’s sake! Both!

I fear a terrorist attack more than a recession. Why? It´s simply because my wife and I have spent the last 15 years investing and saving in order to have a decent retirement and face an oncoming recession, which is where Spain is today, with a clown for president.
By the way, it´s absurd to think that President Bush or any other president would not react to the terrorist attack in the States. If he did overreact, that´s understandable too. What is not understandable is for so many people to ignore that we are in a war against terrorism — a war we cannot afford to lose.
Ron Watson
Madrid, Spain

It is a strange question,you can not compare the life of a person with money that he earns these are two different things i consider,the life is everything but job is not everything

I’m with Eli. (S)he nailed it right on the head.

That’s simple. Neither.

Yes, a recession is a greater threat than terrorism right now- Those who are holding jobs are more concerned about a future without a job or loosing a home etc. Being retired, I also have my fears because everyday seems that prices rise and others as myself live on a fixed retirement income.

It is a big question mark, about how would we cope with a real
recession……and we just have to be aware that lifestyles change
and we need to prepare.

We can’t fight terrorism with a recesion.

RECESSION STRAINS MONEY. PROFIT IS DOWN SO SECURITY WILL BE LESS OF A FOCUS AND TERRORISTS KNOW OUR VALUES!

Recession is what I fear most. Since the world is world, terrorism has existed in one way or another. Whether you call it revolution, civil war or any other term, it is always a form of terrorism in the eyes of the opposition. That’s why Dems are terrorists in the opinion of the Reps, although they will use other abject terms to call them, like the word “liberal” which they really are not.
Today, though, it’s the recession to fear the most because now that Bush has messed up our standing in the world, and his buddies the Saudis tell him in his face to f*** off in not small terms, the USA, nay the world, is now at the mercy of OPEC. After we spent trillions to help them with Iraq and Koweit, they turn their back on us and are bringing us to the verge of economic collapse.
Bush lied, people died and we’re all going to pay for it all.

The only thing we have to fear…

Well, as a US Citizen living abroad, I definitely fear a recession much more. As cameraman in the article said, the chances of being hit by a terrorist attack is pretty low, and, sadly enough, the impact is generally confined to the target of terrorism. The impact of a recession, however, has much further reaching implications.

I’m frankly amazed that anyone would consider this question contraversial? Terrorism is a tiny tiny danger to Americans compared to driving a motor car, smoking cigarettes or a host of other risks that people think little of. In many parts of the world earthquakes would be a far greater threat.

It is time that Americans got a bit of perspective. In the annals of human suffering 9/11 was a small tragedy. I’m really sorry that it happened, but get real.

What is the point of fearing, it only gets in the way of progress.

I fear terrorism more. Monetary markets , economies can be better in
the future altough oil prices are soaring up. But when terrorism occurs there is no return. Terrorism and regression is
vital concept that threatens humanity . But I am taking terrorism
into account more seriously.

I fear terrorism, only because I live and work in Baghdad. I have felt insurgent rockets, mortars and car bombs regularly detonate in my vicinity. Last year working in the states, I already felt like I was living through a recession. I took contract work in Iraq to get away from it. I prefer the rockets.

I am a professional soldier and I also definitely fear recession more than terrorism. What I fear more than death will be that I will have to stand by while the ruined economy destroys everything that I have sacrificed so much for. Already I can not afford to live in an area with good public schools, afford to send my children to private schools, afford a home in a nice area nor make any real progress saving the hundreds of thousands it now takes to send a child to college. We should all walk to D.C. and slear out the House in Senate because we have allowed rich lobbiests to steal the American Dream and way of life right from under our noses. From being the leader for over a hundred years in education, health care and workers rights we now reside below almost every industrialised nation on most international reviews of quality of life. We currently work more per week than any other nation (aside from Japan), yet rank behinde most 1st wrold nations in vacation time (family values my butt), income, access to a college education and healthcare. Tens of millions of hardworking Americans do not have any healthcare yet huge oil companies like Exxon, Phillips, etc are given tax breaks saving them millions of dollars. Multimillionaires with fortunes worth hundreds of millions of dollars escape paying taxes through fancy accounting while the IRS goes after middle class workers who make $30,000 a year. The IRS’s responce, the middle class worker will not fight the judgement while the rich will entagle them in expensive legislation that the poor can not afford.

Citizens must step up and force term limits down corrup Washington in order to break the backs of the lobbiest system that has corrupted our goverment and slanted our policies and priorities against our citizens. There is not reason that the United States can not do what almost all of Europe has done for a hundered years; provide free college, free healthcare and enough vacation time off to actually promote family values.

Recession is to be feared much more because it contributes to the dessimation of the American way of life which is rapidly becoming but a dream.

I fear terrorism more. Monetary markets , economies can be better in
the future altough oil prices are soaring up. But when terrorism occurs there is no return. Terrorism and regression is
dangerous concept that threatens humanity . But I am taking terrorism
into account more seriously

As a European I don’t fear a recession in the US. It was bound to happen and will be a test case for the world to show it can do without the US. And why should anyone, Americans included, fear “terrorism”? Life is life-threating and dangers are everywhere, in our homes, workplaces and most of all on our roads. Most of my personal “near-death experiences” were so far related to driving, involving my own and other people’s mistakes. In contrast, running for cover upon hearing the words terrorist or bomb is paranoid and extremely naive. If I flew to the US with US carriers on a daily basis, my chances of dying in an air-accident would be so much greater than being blown up by someone seeking revenge against the US. And it is less than a one in a million chance to crash with plane today! And isn’t gang violence in big US cities a far bigger threat as well, and still a small one?

I fear recession the most . I am an engineer holding my master degree and I have a hard time finding a job and I struggle every day just to survive . There are so many educated people out there without job .Gas price is ridiculos and food is getting more and more expensive . I think the whole terrorism is caused because of recession.

I’m an American student living in central London. I walk daily through the places where the London bombings took place, and I still think a recession (which the US is in right now) is much worse.

The dollar value is absolutely killing me (and the other 40,000 Americans) living in London, and the US economic policies are not helping. Some of the things that have gone down hill just in the past year since I’ve been here:
-cost of food/gas/etc is rising
-job market is looking increasingly bleak (even for my engineering degree, which is supposed to be one of the best degrees to have coming out of college)
-harder to get student loans due to the “credit crunch” (b/c it is bigger then just the “housing market crunch” now)
- and our overall respect by the international commmunity (see the article “http://www.newsweek.com/id/137146″ for a pretty good description of it)
-I’m sure there are more people can come up with…

Hopefully we can turn this around, but it’s going to be a long process.

Terrorism was died right now …
Recession was died step by step …
I fear all of them , my God !

Recession is not something that should ever be feared. It is a natural tightening/contracting/consolidating economic stage which is part of a growth pattern. Without recesison we’d have runaway inflation, and unchecked economic excesses. It may not be politically correct to say this since there is always human suffering involved during recession, but there is no non-inflationary way to avoid it. In order to avoid recession the US would have to continuously devalue the US dollar which ultimately hurts everyone. That has been the strategy so far, and now we have a worthless dollar. Bring on the recession instead.

I am currently living in Japan. I am American and would like to return home with my children and wife. But, as a recession seems very likely,
I am reluctant. Working in another country allows me to live comfortably.
Yes, I fear recession! I want to return home someday if I could earn a living.

I am worried about oil prices which will bring recession. Bush has no solution to control oil price neither Obamama. Obama recently opposed Hillary proposal who wants to eliminate oil tax for short time. But Obamama like Bush did not offer short term solution. Every thing is going up and our goverment sitting back and watch suffering people and doing nothing. I do not know what to but hopping some one will come up with up quick solution.

I fear recession more in that it is more invasive upon all Americans than a terrorist attack.

I fear a terrorist attack more, at least within the next couple of months. A recession may help to force attention on the struggling middle and lower classes, and less on the thriving upper class. A terrorist attack, on the other hand, could have a much worse effect on the country. Bush has until July to get his goals achieved, and few people believe in those goals any longer, which he drives home in every speech that the terrorists are to blame for the world today. Another attack would be harmful to our country not because it would instill fear in Americans once again, but because it would give the Bush administration that sweeping power that it once had during September 11 that led to the Patriot Act and the Iraq War.

bush-bush-bush-bush

I fear both… a terrorist attack during the recesion we are in. I think a well planned attack like the one shown in the “We Were Warned, Out of Gas” special CNN showed could seriously create chaos in the US and in the world.

Fear terrorism, and the Terrorists have won.

terrorism is the least of my worries, heck, i’m more worried about my plane crashing due to technical problems than from a terrorist hi-jacking..

Terrorist attacks directly affect very few people, ie - the immediate victims. A recession on the other hand will affect the nation, then, looking at things from a 1920’s point of view, the rest of the world.

I would fear a recession more. I think what a terriorst can do is very limited, unless they can set off a nuclear device. This is why we should protect our ports.

If we were attacked by terrorists, we can find out what country is behind it and take that country. out. In the 9/11 situation, Iraq had nothing to do with it. Look at the people involved, they were mostly Saudis, so we should attack Saudi Arabia and that would also solve our oil problem. Pakistan is also another country that was involved and still harbor Al Quida and most of their top leaders. In both of these country, Bush is pandering to them. He is kissing the Saudi’s ass by begging for oil and spending billions in Pakistan to fight terrorist, money which is mostly wasted.

A recession will affect millions of Americans. It will cause misry that many people will not be able to survive. Even the worst terriorist attack only killed 3000 people. The disruption that followed 9/11 was more of an over reaction than actual. A terrorist attack will unite the country, like what happened after 9/11. If we had a great or even a passable leader instead of Bush, we could have also united the world against terrorisim. Many countries backed us after 9/11, now we are one of the most hated countries in the world.

Recession. It’s incredulous to say the Bush administration’s policies have increased terrorism worldwide. This dissonance between perceived theories and actual historical facts and trends reflects as much. What did his policies do to incur 9/11? The USS Cole bombing? The Africa Embassy bombings? Khobar Towers? Lebanon?

It’s easy to blame President Bush: his administration was the first to proactively and premptively go after regimes that have threatened America with violence. Not surprisingly, this has not worked out very well and the toll in blood and treasure have been intolerably high. But, there’s nothing we can do about terrorism. Terrorists do not hate the West because of President Bush’s policies, they hate us fundementally, they hate the us for who we are and what we represent. So there will be conflicts, there will be clashes - there’s nothing to fear when you come to realization.

The recession, on the other hand, is more predictable. We’re in a downward cycle and it will hit us hard. Prices on everyday items have increased. People have to choose between dinner and filling up to go to work tomorrow. To me that is much more scary: to focus on the worsening economy rather than the inevitable.

I though the obvious question was recession.

I have a better chance of winning the lottery than being a victim of a terrorist attack. The recession however…

It has to be recession. Strong economy can help countries to cope with terrorism. But even if all is peace(which is unlikely) it is hard for countries to stop recession. It affects millions. Better border security and stringent terrorist laws may help reduce effect of terrorism. But if you lose your job, you are helpless. Prolonged recession period can lead you and yours to depression.

I must thank Todd for drawing our attention to such a poignant account. Think the ballyhoo drawn out of these isolated terrorist attacks and depreciation of the greenback, along with the “devastating” effects that seemingly ensues make us think that we are actually living in a despondent and hopeless world en-route to apocalypse.

Think again.

The general malaise is virtually uncalled for. What is 911, Madrid and London as compared to Holocaust or the Nanking Massacre, events that happened in the past century too. Didn’t the world recover from all that, with both the victim and the culprit enjoying unprecedented economic growth today?
As for all the hysterics behind the mortgage crisis, will it be ever more depressing, pardon the pun, than the Great Depression? The world bounced back into vitality even when the US was the one and only economic powerhouse back then. Look at the world today, China, India, Russia; would the existence of all these economic potentates render the world MORE vulnerable to such a crisis?

The above is precisely why i don’t fear either. What i DO fear is that of the mass media and its ability to instill fear in many of its readers.

Terrorism can end your life - if you’re dead a recession doesn’t matter.

Recession. Terrorism is something that does indeed exist, we’ve all felt it here in the city, but the fear of terrorism has become marketed by the Bush administration as something that is emminent when it is not.
Recession is here now, and it hurts and very possibly going to get worse. What happens when the economy goes down? Domestic crime goes up. What is far more likely to happen? A local hoodlum looking to rip off or mug you or the the possibility that 9/11 will happen again?
The problem with targeting terrorism as our biggest fear is that the governing parties begin to neglect domestic issues, crime will inevitably rise while all of our resources are focused on terrorism that will most likely not happen. We need financail relief and government support here in the US.

Personally, I fear recession more. I live in Moscow, and having seen terrorist attacks first-hand here (Chechnyan suicide bombers) a few years ago, you can say that this is something I know about. Sure, having then been a foreign student here, it was pretty scary (and it happened down the road from the university), but we all still went to class, had a good time, walked around the city and such. We were a bit wary of people, but it was nothing we couldn’t cope with. But a recession would mean the disruption of a lot of things in my life, things would like to think I have control over. I have a family to feed.

The fear of not being able to care for my daughter and not give her a good start in this life scares me more than any thoughts of dying on the metro (Moscow tube) or of being killed in a cafe or market by a suicide bomber or other terrorist attack. The latter is just too random, while a recession is in the hands of the government. Governments don’t tend to be in touch with the thoughts of the average citizen - not in any country (with the possible exception of Sweden).

I fear a recession more. The probability of being killed in a terrorist attack is very low; more chance of getting killed in a car accident. A recession, however, is affecting ALL of us, it is already here and we cannot escape it. Our pay remains stagnant yet our expenses have increased by at least 5% in most areas (gas, food). I know of NO ONE in my immediate circle of friends and family who are not suffering a suffering badly in the current economic conditions. This is the worst I have experienced in my adult life and I am 53 now. Our economy is in the toilet and someone needs to admit it and do something about it.

Praise the Good Lord! Finally someone got it right, someone has seen through the veil these fear- and warmongers have put over our eyes after 9/11. Terror is nothing! Terror only works if you LET them terrorize you. Look at what Londoners had to endure during the Battle of Britain (bombings, V1, V2), that was Terror from 10000 feet and it NEARLY broke their fighting spirit. But it didn’t, and the rest is history…

Definitely a recession….A terrorist attack is so unlikely, that its laughable…A recession can be prolonged torture

I have to tell you, my response to the first sentence in this article is probably shared by most non-Americans. I laughed out loud. To say it’s controversial to even -suggest- that the recession could be a more pressing fear than terrorism illustrates perfectly the culture of fear that the Neo-Cons have instituted in America. The reason why the Londoners went about their business just -days- after the London bombings is simple : they’ve seen it all before, and realise that the best way to let the terrorists win is to let your society be crippled by fear. They lived through the blitz, they know all about getting on with things. And as people here have pointed out, statistically, you’re about as likely to be hurt in a terrorist attack than you are to be struck by lightning. So why the fear?

Ray,
You cannot be serious. Radical muslims running western countries because a few terrorist attacks? Rubbish!!!
As for looking at the facts, the real facts, do you care to share them with us. Having lived around the world and being very familiar with many cultures, I seriously doubt your assessment about Muslim radicals capabilities. Firstly, because none of these countries has enough muslim population to form an to effectively rule over a largely christian majority. Secondly, despite the fear mongering message of some politicians and publications, the objective of muslim radicals is NOT to rule the world, but to get the west out of their lives(ie. US bases out of middle east and US funding which enables Israeli aggression). Any other assessment is spin to create fear.
Again, I would be VERY interested in what you see as the REAL facts rather than blanket statements that other facts are not quite REAL enough.
JG
Sydney, Australia

Todd bowls a doosra over here… Terrorism or recession… Rather we people sitting and making perceptions that wont matter a lot, ask from the ones who are suffering terrorism on regular basis… Iraq, India, Afghanistan, Palestine, Lebanon, Sri Lanka among many others. As far as recession is concerned if it affects the super powers its more dangerous than terrorism coz these super powers have seen limited terror activities so far as compared to regular ones which are always on hit list. For me terrorism should be dealt with iron hands and recession can be controlled by smart thinking…

depends on where you are, in the war infested areas of africa people have not seen food , for them “terrorism ” mainly state sponsored is the problem. If you ask a Japanese they will say recession. I am from India, though it is not documented enough , India has been suffered the most due to terrorism. Last tuesday we had a bomb blast in one of our major cities,saturday the stadiums were packed and life went along, its not that we are not emotional people, but we have coped with terrorism, much like the english during the IRA campaign. Ask the question to a average Indian he will say what is recession, we think 4% growth is a recipe for disaster. We are used to terrorism , recession is an unknown for us and we fear the unknown.

I personally fear none of them, Both of them has nothing to do with my average and ordinary life.

Recession
The name says all no matter whatever happen in the world but if you cannot control anything every next person will be consider as an enemy. Specially when you are living in multiculture and multi religious countries you will find it more and from that place it will grow.
Only we can control and only we can spread it, its our choice.
SO BE MATURE AND IGNORE THIS PLEASE FOR ALL OF US.

I agree with the statement Sam, above, made. That recession is a form of terrorism and I believe that George Bush is a terrorist. He has destroyed the country we love. I am teaching in another country and was to return after a year, but now I am going to stay out of the country longer, until we elect a new democratic President who can hopefully get the country back on track. It may be years now until I return, and in the meantime I am spending my money in another economy when I’d rather be spending it at home. Living here in South Korea shows that living can remain affordable for the “average” person and we shouldn’t have to struggle. The US needs to improve it’s public transportation and look to other means that guzzling gas daily. It’s become almost embarresing to admit I am an American, and if you have done any overseas traveling, you know what I mean. Let’s get rid of Bush and hurry to clean up the mess he made!

Definitely fear recession more. It strikes everyone and the poorest most. Terrorism strikes very few and in isolated areas. Unfortunately the excessive money spent in a poorly planned and executed so-called war on terrorism wastes so much of the worlds human and financial resources that it has become a threat in itself. Result is more devastation of the economy and inhanced risks of serious recession. If we spend more time, effort and money on imorving the economic condition of peoples lives around the world, then we will lessen the potential for terrorism.

Of course the normal person would feel recession more. I mean when was the last time a terrorist attacked any of the million rural homes in the US? Seriously, and when was the last terrorist attack in the US since 911? And b4 911 that actually shook the country.

I do not find the question contraversial, only a reflection of reality

Definitely fear recession more. It strikes everyone and the poorest most. Terrorism strikes very few and in isolated areas. Unfortunately the excessive money spent in a poorly planned and executed so-called war on terrorism wastes so much of the worlds human and financial resources that it has become a threat in itself. Result is more devastation of the economy and inhanced risks of serious recession. If we spend more time, effort and money on improving the economic condition of peoples lives around the world, then we will lessen the potential for terrorism.

I fear both but more of terror attacks than that of recession. I know I will die one day, I would prefer a natural death rater than a death by some crazy individual. Recession you make your earns meet some how and still enjoy your daily life with your family.

I am from India but regularly visit cnn site. I think recession is far more dangerous than terrorism. The bush administration has amplified the word terrorism and what solution they have given FIGHT… Can fire stop fire ?? India got freedom due to non violence teachings of Gandhi. Trust it , it is tested and initiate dialogue and other non violence process. Violence / fight only elevates the situation.

If some person bigger than you attacks you or your house what is your reaction , you try to teach him some lesson by any means .. this is happening here. What reason all the terrorist give ?? US attacked us so we are taking revenge … don’t involve for few years, take this reason out of ther head. A snake will not attack a person without no reason. Think the terrorist as a snake.

Terrorist attack is like a spike it effects the victims and their families but recession effects the whole country and the future generration.

I believe that ignore the terorist things, come out of the countries where army is deployed, invest in your economy first and make it strong. Every one believes in US and wants to lead but not in this way ..
Some steps I would suggest:
1) Come out of the countries where arms are deployed.
2) Initiate dialogue .. or ignore it , The terrorists does not want fight they are also far away from their families and they are poor. I have seen some documentries that some sucide bombers just to make sure that their family is taken care, with a petty amount of money, they do that sort of things.
3) Cultural exchange, games etc ..
4) Help them with jobs etc and try to repair their damage, this way you win their heart.

There are lot many bigger issues at our doorsteps like global warming, depleting fossil fuels,, which is slowely engulfing us like a dragon. Action on those first.

Recession! The 9/11 terroist act in hindsight now was primarly to damage the US economic power. (Why did they pick the Twin Tower in the heartland of capitalism???) Lifes lost were just collateral damage to achieve that goal.

US won the coldwar by bankrupting Russia.

US feared China due to its economic prowess…

the answer is obvious.

Fear is Personal’s,
both could be come, but don’t fear about who kill the your body but fear about who kill your soul and spirit !

My biggest fear is what the so-called leaders of this country are capable of doing as long as they continue unchallenged and unpunished.

If they take our country to war with Iran, recession and terrorism will seem like a Sunday afternoon in the park!

Sincerely

CChristian

I fear recession. I fear this because I feel it is the presidents form of terrorisim. He has but this country into a state of fear. He has ruled by fear and has driven the United States into near bankruptcy, much like what happened to Russia.

I fear a recession more than a terrorist attack. Even a tragic event such as 9-11 only had a direct impact on part of the population (those who perished, their friends and family), but in a recession, everyone is a victim.

What I fear most? Americans !

The only thing I fear is that Americans have completely given in to fear itself.

I’m sick of this country defining itself based on what its people are afraid of: terrorists, gay marriage, immigrants, economic downturn, China, people with unfamiliar names… the list goes on and on. These are not signs of a strong, healthy, vibrant country willing or able to lead in the 21st century.

I fear terrorism to a lesser extent ( because these are things that only happen to others) and recession and inflation more because it affects me and everyone on a daily basis , however what I fear most is the intolerance of every man for , the way of life ,religion,way of thinking and freedom of his fellow human being.

Fear is how they control you. I’m not scared.

Terrorism! First its retarded and terrorist are brain washed and scary, second, the more terrorism the more inferior i will be to others, because terrorism is associated with arabs and muslims, and im from lebanon, and i agree that thats they case and its sad. So yeah, terrorism is a disaster both ways…

I disagree with Gene. I feel that McCain is right for our country in regards to Forgein Policy, and the war in Iraq. He has served and was a POW, Bush had no military experience.
I fear “terrorism” more than a recession. We are a country that can get ourselves out of a recession. Terrorism can not be stopped no matter what we do, we can better prepare, and try to make more friends so that something like that does not happen, but we cannot prevent one.
A reccession on the otherhand that is in our complete control, and it is us being the American people. We buy things we cannot afford, like houses, cars, then we put all that on credit. Then we ask the Government to help when we over send. Tell me this, were does that money come from, my taxes, your taxes? If we live within our means, and save then there is no recession. If we read what we are signing, before we sign then we have no else to blame but ourselves. Quit buying crap that later will be of no use, and save. Stop buying SUV’s gas guzzling cars, take your lunch to work etc… That also might make for a better world for us all, and help curb Global Warming.

I don’t fear either.

Thanks to media for making every muslim in the world a TERRORIST
I don’t fear terrorism and recession i fear being muslim .

Waheed

This is even under the assumption, that a recession costs no lives:
* People are depressed or angry more of the time. Depressed and angry people are more likely to cause accidents (plus there may be an increase in crime also)
* Cheaper cars have fewer built in security
* greater pressure on companies for low prices -> greater pressure to only fulfill the required minimum for security at the workplace.
More stress -> more accidents, more heart problems
People have to buy cheaper food -> heart problems (this, i think, is a big one)
* more people, who cannot survive financially without crime (or, at least, who see no other possibilities)
….
If you have these changes in statistics in a big population, like the whole US, i think it will add up to more fatalities than some terror attack easily.

l think this seems crazy, for so long USA has been in war with Afghanistan, lrak and so on we haven’t see any changes since then. My only fear is that USA could not solve this war. The leaders must leave them and contribute better securities to their own country.

Neither! Fear of terrorism is irrational. I am more afraid of random violence by our very own citizens than “terrorists”.

Terrorism and recession are inter-related. Either causes the other.
Peace is a must for development . Throughout history, the lack of the other has come handy to power-seekers in bullying the masses.

I certainly agree with recession. Being professional i dont want to loose my identity as i’ve tried lot to gain it. Terrorism in other hand is also serious. Chances of victim of terrrorism is 0.001% where i currently facing recession. Afterall i am residing in western world.
But i think there is no comparision of these two topics as it doesnt make sense to compare economy and threat.
hope you dont mind but recession is created by US to make more money on oil prices.

Both, in equal measure.

A recession is what I fear most at this time.

Ray, I am a conservative living in the US. You were talking about “the real facts”. Where are you getting the “real facts” from? Bush? Michael Moore? Fox News? CIA (who told us about the WMDs)?

Also by definition a Leader should have followers. I do not see many nations following the US in the current war. Then how can you talk about the US taking the “leadership”?

Recession impacts the population as a whole. Terrorism, as terrible as it is, is as isolated as a house fire, a train wreck or an earthquake. More or less, you have no control over isolated events and you can’t let them dictate the way you live your life. The effect of a recession on the other hand, injures across all demographics. Unless you live in a war zone, an individual’s chance of dying in a terrorist attack is still less than dying in a plane wreck, a rare disease or a shark attack.

Todd you ask the right questions. What I fear is the incompetent President and administration that has killed more Americans by war, poverty, famine or natural disaster in the last 8 years than terrorism has killed Americans in 30 years and has brought us to the worst financial crisis in modern times. We are in a 21st century depression, just look to the bank bail outs, echoes of 1934! Fear not the words; fear the people who’s evil deeds bring them upon us, and who use them to control us.

This is an interesting question and even more interesting if you consider the economic consequences of each one. A recession has direct consequences for a large number of people and as such could reasonably be viewed as the threat which has the widest impact. On the other hand, the probability of being impacted by the initial terrorist incident is relatively low (…….but higher than being struck by a meteorite) however the spinoffs of such an attack can be much worse than a recession. Uncertainty, drop in asset values, decreased value of investments, hassles in travelling for business and pleasure, pessimistic outlook and suspicions can significantly impact our economies and in turn us. While not fearing being directly caught up in an attack most of us would be caught up in the aftermath.

i believe sadly and unwisely,the wrongful strategy of combating terrorism is the one that soared up the oil prices and led to recession.
nevertheless recession affects more than terrorism(till now),it affects education an essential tool used to fight the ideology of terrorism,not just gun against gun,its thought against thought.

I don’t fear either one. Recession happens just like terrorist actions and both can be prevented. I’m not sure how to prevent either but I don’t believe any goverment in the world is capable of preventing either forever.

While Waheed’s comment above is regrettable it is also true. The media has made muslims in general out to be terrorist. But… Most terrorists are unfortunately muslim.

I do not fear either. Let’s face up to something that no politician will ever say: Terrorism threats will always be here because there will always be a group of individuals with vast monetary resources that is unhappy about something and a will to make a statement. .

Recessions happen because of bad monetary policies, be it personal, corporate, or governmental so no stopping it.

What I do fear is an affliction that we can’t seem to cure…………. Human Ignorance. It ranges from electing incompetent leaders, to creating false wars, to humans acting like sheeple (people following along in a heard with out invoking critical thinking), to passively attempting peace just for your own legacy. If we cure human ignorance, then we will no longer have the need to ask such questions.

i would say, recession. i am from Brunei Darussalam an islamic country. we are a very small and peaceful country population of under 400 thousand,and we do not tolerate and undesirable activities.

the ever increasing global prices recently affected us more than terrorism.being a very peaceful country, we are more concerned with the increasing prices in staple food which does affect the whole population here.

I truly resent the framing of the question. Frankly it trivializes both and guides the reader into an emotional responsiveness . Acts of terrorism may be terrible for you if you are the direct victim but frankly are meaningless in the greater stream of our daily lives. A worldwide recession touches each one of us at the core of our being and threatens our daily peace of mind . The financial threat is more powerful by orders of magnitude. By framing the question as was done I must wonder if you, the author , are some sort of propaganda monger for the existing political leadership. The only people benefitting from the stupidity of the fearmongering that this kind of question represents are our modern political leaders.

I believe that recession is the greater worry. With the cost of living rising, people have less to give those in need. Those in need are often the same people that turn to terror to get what they believe is theirs. Recession has a direct influence on political decision making as Western governments will have less to spend on programs to lessen the causes of terrorism.

The data from the USA points to the economy being the biggest decider in the upcoming election. One of the main reasons people are calling for the troops to come home is not because they believe the war has been won, nor that the Iraq can handle the country themselves but that the war is costing too much and that money could be best spent elsewhere.

So if you fear terrorism then you better hope that any recession doesn’t slow down any progress being made to combat it.

I am more afraid of a terrorist attack. A recession doesn’t cause death, at least not directly, but a terrorist attack causes death and economic chaos. I dont think anyone can live with the horrors of witnessing those heinous things firsthand but we can always recover from a recession. I hope we all find ways out of these quagmires whenever we are unfortunate to be victims of them.

Living oversea’s you would think that the threat of terrorism would be feared most but I can say for certain that while living oversea’s has its risk, I personally have not felt the fear of terrorism like I have felt the fear of recession. Daily we are reminded how far the USD has dropped, the cost of living oversea’s is incredible. The cost of fuel hear is $7.00 per gallon. The USD copmpared to the EURO is $0.62, and in the UK we are talking about a 2-1 ratio, that is scary, especially when you see the second world countries joining the European Union and immediately their currency is worth more then our own….

We need to quit spending money on this so called WAR on TERROR and start working on gettnig the US Economy up to par with other countries around the world or soon enough America will become less of a Super Power then what we think. We need to spend money on education, health care, housing and worry about protecting our economy.

Recession by a long shot, and most people should too. I was in a terrorist attack in Egypt in 2005 and believe me while it was awful, the likelihood of it happening to me personally again are very small. And I rationally know that. However, having also been mugged and beat up for my mobile phone, I know that the worse that the economy becomes the more likely I am to be assaulted for my personal possessions as fewer people have economic security and more people become desperate for honest opportunities. I think this is a major flaw of the public especially in this American political campaign, to focus on the more dramatic, but less likely event and downplay the more common and widespread issue and consequences of economic hardships and the pressures it places on people that are already vulnerable.

The American government has definitely overplayed the threat of terrorist attacks: the alert colors are just a sign of trying to use it to keep people afraid of the real situation. In small towns of just a hundred people, the inhabitants claim they are afraid of terrorism. People say they fear travel, yet more people get killed in accidents every week commuting privately than in public transport, with more people dying in car crashes weekly in the US than any given terror attack in the US. And politicians use it - ‘I am tough on terror’. It is truly a culture of fear, propagated by the media and government.

the recession brings poverty. That is is only danger, eventhough it may not go that far
the terrorism brings death. That is its only danger but it may, too, not go that far.

Therefore i ask myself, why does a person have more fear to confront poverty, than to confront death.

In my eyes this means not only a materialistic mind but a particular arrogant pride.

I think the question should be “Which do you fear most Bush, Terrorist attack , recession?”. I think the answer would be both as Bush stands for both.

Are these the Signs of the Times ? Is this the end of the world spoken of ?

The world is in chaos. Food riots, Earthquakes, Recession, Political chaos, etc. Open your eyes and you will see. THE END IS HERE!!!

Terrorism takes lives quickly. Recession cost lives too: Food Riots, Coups, etc. Recession is a slow death. It depends how you wanna die…

South Africa

I do not fear words or concepts. To do so, is to prepare yourself to lose. Instead, my family and I commit ourselves to preparing for life and then living in the way WE choose.

Fear nothing, gain everything.

No contest…Republican politics worst exemplified by this Bush administration’s policies, or lack there of, which have “managed” to put the fear of recession and terrorism in the heart and mind of every American.

I find it very disturbing how we are programmed into thinking from day one how rosey the world is and how goverment officials run hand in hand through a field of daiseys, wake up people the uk and the us are heading into a police state. We are being run by elite bankers ie Jp morgan, rockafella’s, its documented that Prescott bush ( george w bush’s grandad ) was involved in money laundering for the nazis its a fact. Dont think for one moment that although the 2nd world war was over sixty years ago that history wont repeat itself. Alex jone’s ( look on google video ) has been researching this for years alot of people have said he is crazy but i’ve checked everything he says and everything checks out. I live in England and it’s becoming quite scary to live here now, i’m not talking bomb’s going off i’m talking about our goverment and police force’s. Stop watching reality tv shows and get educated in politics and history.

Americans worst enemy are themselves. And I’m an American. I live in Italy. You get a whole different perspective when you’re not living in the states.

It’s nice to be living outside of the fishbowl. I recommend it to everyone.

Oh…I fear the American recession and the collapse of the USD….

Personally I fear a recession and republicain administration the most,because with this adminstration I’m sure that they can do everything to prevent recession and the terrorisme at beautiful day in front of him to expand and rising in the world and also Iraqi peoples can not live in peace like the other nations with the certainty to be made steal their oil to the detriment of their misery.

as always American peoples think only for their interest.

From the answers I have read we seem to be worried more about our money then living, to me this is what is wrong with the world its all about money, one day we all will die and guess what you can’t take it with you. Live life to the fullest and who cares about the money. We seem to blame everyone else for all the problems in the world, but we should just look in the mirror its all of our fault we created this mess not Bush or Big oil. Everone is out for themselves, bigger cars, bigger houses, bigger tv more more more. MORE MONEY!!! So to answer your question which I fear more neither. I have only one fear not living my life to the fullest.

Recession for sure. I do quite a bit of traveling and not being able to afford travel fares is a much scarier thought that the remote chance I get stuck in the middle of a terrorist act.

I fear recession more . The recession in the states has a knock on effect the world over and we in other countries are feeling the heat just as much as the people in the states . People who have just eased into new jobs are no longer sure of hanging on to it and those who have been at their jobs for so long now dread severe pay cuts . Young students graduating out of college are not assured of a job despite being offered jobs by many Co.’s just a few months ago.

Its all very uncertain. A prolonged period of tension and anguish - its like a bad headache that is ringing a bell in your head and it wont go away .

Terrorism ? The fear of being a victim is ALWAYS there but it doesn’t affect you everyday as the recession is right now.

Recession for me is worse. I travel every month through London and Madrid. I live most of the time in Germany. I felt terrible for the actual victims of 911 and London, but it had no effect on me other than minor inconveniences and travel adjustments.

Recession maybe is feared as we know little of what it means for the economies of the US and western europe to suddenly flip out. We have had a lot of experiences with Terrorism since the 70s and the Pan Am flights. We are comfortable with the model. Bad people bomb a church, hijack a plane, or underground. People will get killed and we hope its not our own skin. But each time from Northern Ireland, London, New York and Madrid, we see people get over it and go on.

Recession on the other hand we dont know much about. We live through minor ones, but we keep waiting for the big one. Will the next recession just be a small 2.0 on the Richter Scale or the mad slipping of California into the Pacific kind of economic change. The thoughts of an organised germany suddenly in absolute chaos because of a collapsed economy, is more threatening then a few freak terrorists.

911 quickly faded from my mind when America became a terrorist nation by attacking Iraq on trumped up causes. I would imagine that the hundreds of thousands of dead Iraqis bear stark testament to this.
However, reccession will have its greatest affect on capitalism, which has long been in need of burial. I will find a spade and help.
Des Currie

Recession is the greater evil - it has a wider impact and does not trigger the same selfless response as a terrorist attack. Will the recession inspire a 911-type all-hands-to the wheel response? I think not, it will be every-man-for-himself.

Terrorism is the making of governments and conspiracies. Dont you think for one moment that the issue is simple as that: terrorism or recession.
things are not as black and white as it might seem.
and also your government as well as mine as well as most governments with power and money feed on terrorism and the fear of terrorism and actually fund the so called “terrorists” (CIA giving weapons to many terrorists or american called terrorists organizations) because they profit from the fear and the mayhem it produces.
so please be smart and stop seeing things as stupidly simple as it has been portrayed in this silly question, recession or terrorism….
my dear reporter, they r both illusions, the real question should be: what do u fear more: ur government or ur next government

Definitely recession.

A son can bear with equanimity the loss of his father, but the loss of his inheritance may drive him to despair-Machiavelli

Kathleen, if you are embarrassed to be an American than by all means stay in South Korea. I lived there for three years and will never step foot in that country again. The reason the Koreans have such a good public transportation system is because they weren’t allowed to own cars until about 20 years ago; public transportation is all they had! For all of you Democrat lovers, think about his: Democrats have controlled Congress for two years and look where the country is now..just think about it instead of listening to the Liberal press 24/7. Congress makes the laws and controls the purse strings, not the President! The difference between Democrats and myself is I actually listen to all sides and look for the facts.

Definitely a recession……if the Neo-Cons were to re-think their strategy in the Middle East and stop babysitting Israel,then the threat of a terrorist attack would indeed be lessened.A pullout from Iraq and Afghanistan coupled with a fair and balanced policy on the “Israel-Palestine” issue will only bring peace.As far as the Recession is concerned,I think it’s going to take time and we must be patient with the “trade cycle”.Its tricky this time because there are fears that a low interest rate environment could fuel inflation.With sky-high crude oil prices and a weak dollar….I wonder where we’re going……someone please tell me

My answer was a terrorist attack, but I asked my husband and he said
” If you see a terrorist attack on tv, then your fine. If you see a recession on tv then your @#$%&%”

I thought that was funny but it got me thinking. Why was I more worried about losing loved ones. Is it because I’m more emotional and think rather of my husband as the main bread winner. Maybe as a man he worried more about the recession. What do you guys think?

Todd, what if there is no recession. You have been saying it for several months now and still no evidence of one. Market has rallied about 11% since January and you are still stuck on this broken record. Have you ever heard the expression that “once the R word is spoken the recession is already over?”

Recession, always. If you want to connect the two, you could easily say that a bad recession would create an inability for the US to fight terrorism. However, at this point in time I am living in Italy, getting paid in euros and getting a “discount” as it were, on my US bills (which is admittedly, a little fun). While I am doing well, my mother, a registered nurse who works in home healthcare, has recently been laid off, and will almost certainly lose her home. So, while I’m able to pay off my bills rapidly and get ahead, my family is losing the things they’ve worked so hard for. It isn’t going to be an easy year for anyone.

Although the undercover agent that al-Qaeda has managed to plant as President of the US has done his utmost to further terrorism, the most damaging effect of his actions has been to stall the economy. The debt he created will be with us for generations.

To Todd:

POEM

If recession comes again

We will loose our money, and than?

But if terrorism kills all of us

We won’t buy our dreaming house!

Maria Giovanna

ps. Can I have Michale From email or phone number? Is he really in Naples? Hilarious!

Bush Terrorism is economic collapse, what a mighty leveller he’s been.

Prohibition and the oil wars are already a failed policy; but bankrupt
fools will cost us all dearly. Ever since the bush-saudi planned 911
attacks, the country has been under assault from the criminal PNAC
American Talibans. And Until these taliban are shamed out of office, the embarassment is all of ours.

Not being a reserve currency is a one way street indeed.

I can’t imagine not fearing terrorism more…..we have lived through recessions and depressions and the majority of people have coped and life carries on albeit without all the extras we all seem to need to live these days! Terrorism is loss of life, loss of family, loved ones, and especially our loss of freedom….I am a native New Yorker who still cries about the Twin Towers….my brother was in the second tower and only because of his good sense to ignore the announcements that “the tower is safe” is he alive to tell his tale. I never, ever felt safe in NYC again….the joy and spontaneity we all lived with was taken away that day. I left New York - and the USA - a year ago and now live in a small town in Ireland where sometimes I still feel the anxiety that September 11th has left with me. Recession will happen and we will go on living and loving and feeling - terrorism happens and the world is never the same.

If you ignore the demolishing of civil liberites and privacy, terrorism only directly affects a relatively small number of people.
Recession directly affects the lives of everybody. Except perhaps the very rich.

The so-called war on terrorism is wasting billions on fighting the wrong enemy. War should be declared on poverty and recession, even if it means that the rich must pay taxes - heaven help us.

Best regards

Peter

Of course recession (stagflation caused by energy prices). Ression in the US is recession in the world. Recession = more terror, as described in the Global resources Analysis 2008 (www.induscorporation.com/downloads)

That’s easy…………recession. A recession effects EVERYONE in every part of their lives…..their present and their future. Terrorism is devastating when it happens, but random in nature……………….