Article note: I'm not sure that 9/11 started it, but it certainly did illuminate to a large swath of politicians that "Fear + Bullshit = Power" is a winning strategy.
There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year old’s life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. The other, of course, involves orcs.