Three weeks ago, the mammoth twin towers of the World Trade Center stood as monuments to American success, capitalism and globalization. Today, all that remains of the towers are tons of rubble and the memories of the still unnumbered victims who died there.
But as recovery operations continue and debris is slowly moved out of the area, people are beginning to ask what will be built in the towers' place. New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani has pledged to rebuild the towers if rebuilding them seems like the right thing to do.
Building replicas of the original towers would be nothing less than folly. Obviously, the towers were symbols of New York and America, prosperity and capitalism, and they would still symbolize these things if they were rebuilt.
And as long as there are twin towers that represent these things, they will be targets for enemies of these principles.
The original towers were twice the objects of terrorist attacks, and rebuilding them would only be an invitation for yet another attack.
In addition to the very real threat of more terrorist attacks, there is also the stigma that would surround the rebuilt towers. What could be unluckier than to be on the 100th floor of a skyscraper that is nearly impossible to escape from in a state of emergency? No one would want to work in the towers. Employees working at their desks would always be wondering if today was the day they might have to jump out of the window to a certain, immediate death.
Rebuilding the towers wouldn't even be a tribute to the victims that died in the attacks. Instead, it would be more like ignoring their deaths by foolishly risking the lives of the new workers. Giant buildings that would trap thousands of people in inescapable towers hundreds of feet in the air would be more like prisons or graves than monuments to American livelihood.
Rather than rebuilding the towers exactly as they were, some of the space should be used to create a memorial to the thousands of victims who lost their lives in that spot. The memorial would be a constant reminder of the victims as well as the heroism of the rescue efforts and of American patriotism.
Architects and engineers should also study ways to make new and different buildings that would be safer in the event of terrorist attacks or other catastrophes.
The attacks on the World Trade Center were undeniably terrible, but simply rebuilding the towers would be foolish.