1

The death toll estimate immediately after the September 11 attack was more than 6,300, which included an exact count of 288 dead at the Pentagon and in the fourth airplane crash in Pennsylvania. The problem in estimating deaths occurred at the collapsed World Trade Center. As more accurate information surfaced, the original estimate was found to include considerable double counting, which led to steady reductions in the estimated number of deaths. Due to the extent of the destruction, relatively few bodies were recovered in ways that allowed identification. By the end of December, more than four months after the buildings collapsed, the estimated had dropped to 3,225, but this was still an estimate, not an actual count. The actual number of deaths may never be known. See Margaret Talbot, "Order of Magnitude: Parsing the Numbers, and the Meaning, of the Sept. 11, Death Toll," New York Times Magazine, December 30, 2001, pp. 16-19. 

2

Gallup Poll, "America's Role in World Affairs," on November 18-21, 2000. The question was, "In general, how do you think the United States rates in the eyes of the world: very favorably, somewhat favorably, somewhat unfavorably, or very unfavorably?" The breakdown was found on January 14, 2002, at http://www.pollingreport.com/defense.htm.

3

President George W. Bush, Address to a Joint Session of Congress and the American People, September 20, 2001. Text of the address was downloaded on January 14, 2002, from http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2001/09/20010920-8.html.

4

Elaine Sciolino, "Who Hates the U.S.? Who Loves It?" New York Times, 9 September 2001, Section 4, p. 1.

5

In 1999, for example, Israel received about $1 billion in aid, which amounted to $171 per Israeli. Russia (a much larger country) received about $1.4 billion, which was only $9 per person. "Where U.S. Foreign Aid Money Goes," Chicago Tribune, November 11, 2001, Section 2, p. 3.

6

Neela Bannerjee, "The High, Hidden Cost of Saudi Arabian Oil," New York Times, 10/21/01, Section 4, page 3. Daily oil consumption in the U.S. is about 19 million barrels.

7

Michael Wines and Sabrina Tavernise, New York Times, November 21, 2001, page A3. In the very early 1990s, Russia consumed an additional 1 million barrels daily.

8

United States Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration, "Non-OPEC Fact Sheet," available at http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/nonopec.html on January 16, 2002.

9

U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Network, "Transportation Topics," available at http://www.eren.doe.gov/EE/transportation.html on January 12, 2002. It should be noted that Canada, not the Middle East, is the largest foreign source of oil for the United States.

10

United States Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration, "Non-OPEC Fact Sheet," available at http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/nonopec.html on January 16, 2002.

11

Neela Bannerjee, "The High, Hidden Cost of Saudi Arabian Oil," New York Times, 10/21/01, Section 4, page 3.

12

James M. Dorsey, "In U.S.-Led War, Young Saudis See the Seeds of Chaos," Wall Street Journal, October 23, 2001.

13

James M. Dorsey, "Saudi Leader Warns U.S. of 'Separate Interests,'" Wall Street Journal, October 29, 2001, p. A17.

14

U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Network, "Transportation Topics," available at http://www.eren.doe.gov/EE/transportation.html on January 12, 2002

15

Banerjee, p. 3.

16

For more than two decades (since the 1974 Arab oil embargo), standard automobiles sold in the United States have been subject to increasingly severe government regulations to increase fuel efficiency. Under these laws, "light trucks" were subject to less severe regulations. About a decade ago, automobile companies began to build passenger vehicles on light truck frames, which led to sport utility vehicles and mini-vans. Sales of SUVs and mini-vans, which do not need to meet the tougher fuel standards for automobiles, now account for more than half of all new-car sales in the United States. A bill to impose the same fuel standards for SUVs and mini-vans was defeated in Congress, due to lobbying by auto companies and the United Auto Workers. See R. C. Longworth, "Why Do Americans Refuse to Conserve?" Chicago Tribune, November 11, 2001, Section 2, p. 1.

17

California Energy Commission, "Selected World Gasoline Prices, Average Prices for April 2001," available at http://www.energy.ca.gov/fuels/gasoline/world_gasoline_prices.html on January 12, 2002.

18

Gallup Poll News Service, "Public Blames Oil and Electric Companies Most for Current Energy Problems," (May 29, 2001), available at http://www.gallup.com/poll/releases/pr010529.asp on January 12, 2002.

19

Ibid.

20

Neela Banerjee, "'Made in America,' and Never Mind the Gas Mileage," New York Times, November 23, 2001, p. C5.

21

Banerjee, p. 3.

22

Richard Butler, "A New Oil Game, with New Winners,' New York Times, January 18, 2002, p. A25.

23

PEW Research Center for the People and the Press, "America's New Internationalist Point of View," available at http://www.people-press.org/102401rpt.htm on January 12, 2002.

24

The Center for International and Security Studies at Maryland, Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA), poll of 602 respondents on November 1-4, 2001. Available on January 13, 2001 at http://www.pipa.org/OnlineReports/Terrorism/WarOnTerr.html.

25

Lizette Alvarez, "House Approves $582 Million for Back Dues Owed to U.N.," New York Times, September 25, 2001, p. A8.

Return to section 1