Similarities between 1950's and 9/11 society

How is 1950’s society similar to post 9/11 Society?

Throughout the ages history has often become repetitive, two events from history which are surprisingly very similar would be the 1950’s and todays society (post 9/11). The first similarity would be the levels of fear that every citizen possesses.  In the 50s the main scare would be the fear of communism taking over (the red scare – communism) (the amount of fear of this in America was ridiculous as they often treated it as not only a threat to national security but also a threat to American life itself!).  The current fear affecting America now would be the everlasting fear that the terrorists are plotting to attack and destroy the very foundations that they are currently living on. The comparisons for paranoia also fit into fear as several American citizens from both time periods became “conspiracy theorists” and would find specific links between simple things (such as presidential speeches or forms of the media) and develop in-depth theories. Politicians exploited the Americans as the high levels of paranoia allowed them to be easily controlled and this alone stopped them questioning political choices as they believed that the everything the government were doing is for the good of the American name.

The second comparison would be the reactions/plans of the government. The comparison would be “McCarthyism” and the “Patriots Act”, both of these laws allow the government to lower levels of freedom for the “safety” of the people. The Patriots Act however is more advanced as due to new technology the government is able to infiltrate phone calls/text messages/emails, they are able to catch people who they believe to be “terrorists” but the cost the citizens are forced to pay could be considered a breach in their human rights (this is exactly what McCarthyism planned to achieve)