Pearl Harbor and September 11 were two devastating events in the history of the United States. Although the events occurred 60 years apart, this does not take away the significance of the two. The attacks on Pearl Harbor ultimately caused the United States to enter World War II; subsequently, September 11th also began the War on Terror. Ultimately, these two tragedies together resulted in over 5,400 deaths and over 7,200 injuries. These two events defined the presidencies of both presidents in office at the time, Franklin D. Roosevelt and George W. Bush. The two tragedies that have marked American history have forever changed the world and the American consciousness, as lessons are learned from the events of Pearl Harbor and September 11th. We say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay At first, these two tragedies seem to have more parallels than you might think. The similarities between 9/11 and Pearl Harbor outweigh the inconsistencies. One similarity is that both events were sneak attacks. The two events happened in the morning and left the nation in total disbelief. During the attack on Pearl Harbor, U.S. soldiers were based near Honolulu, Hawaii in 1941. However, on the morning of December 7, 1941, a fleet of Japanese suicide planes arrived and targeted the naval base. The Japanese destroyed the American Army of the Pacific. Five of the eight American battleships were sunk by suicide planes. The attacks lasted over two hours with waves of planes hitting ships and military bases. There were not only planes, but bombs, machine guns and torpedoes (Kuhn). One of the ships that suffered the most damage was the USS Arizona. The USS Arizona was responsible for nearly half of the attacks' casualties. The ship sank after being hit four times by Japanese planes. Like the Pearl Harbor attacks, September 11 was a surprise early morning attack. An Islamic group known as Al-Qaeda and its leader Osama Bin Laden led the attacks on New York. That disastrous attack left America unprepared for what was to come. Employees working in the North and South Towers of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon went to work thinking it was another normal day at the office. However, at 8:46 a.m. on September 11, 2001, everything was anything but normal. One hijacked plane, American Airlines Flight 11, turned mid-flight and was headed straight for the North Tower. The plane crashed into the 93rd and 99th floors of the North Tower. Just 17 minutes later, another hijacked plane, United Airlines Flight 175, was turned around and headed for the South Tower. Luckily, before the second plane hit, 10,000 people had already been evacuated from both towers (Bush). 14,000 people. The plane hit floors 75 to 85 and trapped hundreds of people on the upper floors. The tower would collapse at 9:59. Just over 30 minutes later, another plane was headed to the Pentagon. The hijacked plane crashed into the west side of the Pentagon, killing 184 people. The last of the four hijacked planes was headed for the White House. However, the people on United Flight 93 learned of the other three planes and decided to take action. The plane's passengers stormed the cockpit and fought off the hijackers. Instead of hitting its intended target, it crashed in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The effects of 9/11 and Pearl Harbor persist today. There are survivors such as police officers, firefighters, first responders, employees and bystanders who are still affected to this day. Officers and firefighters are still dying today of cancercaused by smoke and debris from the World Trade Towers which collapsed 18 years later. The effects that the attack on Pearl Harbor left behind are still relevant today. After the USS Arizona was hit and sunk, fuel leaked and continued to leak into the ocean. The fuel killed several species of ocean life. There are an estimated 500,000 gallons of fuel still slowly leaking into the water today. Another similarity between 9/11 and Pearl Harbor is the method used by the attackers. Both attackers were foreigners and in both cases planes were also used. The planes hijacked during the September 11 attack were two Boeing 767s and two Boeing 757s. Both planes were twin-engine airliners. A twin-engine Boeing 767 airliner can carry up to 350 people. The main aircraft used by the Japanese Kamikaze at Pearl Harbor were the Aichi D3A and the Aichi E13A. Some other aircraft used to destroy five US battleships were the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, the Boeing P-26 Peashooter, and the B52 bomber. While most of the similarities come from the attacks and attack method, there are presidential comparisons. Both Franklin D. Roosevelt and George W. Bush performed extraordinarily well. The two presidents addressed the nation about the tragedies with sympathy and compassion. President Roosevelt gave his famous speech the day after the attacks with the famous phrase: “December 7, 1941, a date that will live in infamy.” He delivered this speech to a joint session of the United States Congress. In contrast to President Roosevelt's handling of the event, President Bush's was at an elementary school in Florida. However, his speech was an impromptu speech at Ground Zero on the day of the attack. His speech is remembered for how he acted as if he were not the president of the United States, but just an ordinary citizen saddened by the attack. President Bush hugged a first responder and addressed people at Ground Zero with a megaphone. Bush told American citizens that this day and this attack would not define the United States of America. To commemorate the victims of Pearl Harbor and September 11, there are memorials to help families cope better and to give the general public a better understanding of the attacks. In midtown Manhattan there is a beautiful 9/11 memorial dedicated to the workers, bystanders and first responders who risked their lives to save the lives of others. It not only commemorates the victims of 9/11, but also commemorates the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center, which killed six people. Mementos the memorial showcases include wallets, purses, shoes, posters looking for loved ones, partially destroyed fire trucks and parts of the World Trade Center structure. There are multiple levels of the building and there are comprehensive tours throughout the memorial. The memorial is operated by a non-profit organization. The goal of the said organization is to raise funds to keep the memorial and museum running. Also in midtown Manhattan is another 9/11 memorial. This memorial is called the Ground Zero Memorial and has built fountains along the base of where the North and South Towers were located. Along the perimeter of the memorial all the names of the people killed on that terrible day are engraved in the fountain. Flowers, pictures and American flags are pinned to the names of the victims by their families. The memorial recognizing the fallen soldiers of Pearl Harbor and the events that occurred on December 7, 1941 is located in Honolulu, Hawaii. It was erected on May 30, 1962. The memorial was built on the sunken USS Arizona with hundreds of soldiers preserved in the..