October 2001
Editor's Notes
On behalf of the staff and board of directors of The Fraser Institute, I wish to express our deepest condolences to all those who have lost family, friends, and colleagues in the tragic events that took place on September 11 in the United States. To our members and friends in the United States dealing with this great loss, we wish you strength during this difficult time. In the face of this devas-tating attack, citizens across North America are encouraged to renew their commitment to the principles of democracy and freedom. — Raymond J. Addington, OBE, |
The World Trade Centre and Pentagon bombings of September 11 have had a profound effect on us all. To a greater or lesser extent, the catastrophe has inspired each of us to re-evaluate our own lives and goals. Much of what we do now seems trivial and inconsequential, so many of our worries petty and self-serving.
When I first began assembling this issue of Fraser Forum immediately after the terrorist attacks, I wondered how important it was for us to go ahead with an issue that talks about poverty and welfare, about generic drug prices, and about how to bring capitalism and its attendant wealth to third world countries. In the end, I concluded that it is important, and that these issues and others, many of which we have researched for years, do matter.
They matter because they are all pieces of the puzzle that, once assembled, form our civilization. Yes, it has flaws. Yes, among ourselves we disagree about what could make our world better. But at the end of the day, our collective history has led us to this point, to these fortunate lives, and we wouldn’t trade them for any other civilization at any other point in history. One way to improve everyone’s lives, in North America and abroad, is to advocate sensible public policies. Doing so is this Institute’s way of fighting back against the fear and uncertainty the terrorists have brought us.
—Kristin McCahon
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