If “Operation Cyclone” had not happened America would be a very different place today.
Operation Cyclone was the code name for a program, run by the CIA, which was to arm the mujahideen in Afghan, during the Soviet-Afghanistan War. This war would end up costing America billions of dollars and then ultimately thousands of lives in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and the ensuing war. Relying on the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence for distributing the money and other aid to Afghani mujahideen, Operation Cyclone sought to mire down the Soviet Union it a Vietnam like war.
Unfortunately, these people used the money to fund a resistance leader by the name of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar who was friendly to Osama bin Laden (USA funded Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda). The United States created their worst enemy by removing the Soviets and the communist puppet from power in Afghanistan. The absence of power left by this created the Taliban, who in turn gave sanctuary to Al-Qaeda (Kraszkieweicz, N. Oct 2012). Looking back, if Operation Cyclone was not sanctioned the world might have been a different place, but America definitely would not have seen the horror of 9/11 and quite possibly they would not have been mired in the Iraqi War. As Americans we really need to think before we act, especially when it comes to trying to fix the worlds problems.
The other person or event I chose is John Hinckley. An America where this man did not exist or events played out a different way would be entirely different. John Hinckley is in effect responsible for the Brady Bill. Mr. Hinckley became obsessed with Jodie Foster after viewing the movie Taxi Driver multiple times. He tried several ways to get her attention, but nothing seemed to work, so he thought that it would take something significant to impress her.
His grand gesture to prove that he loved Ms. Foster was to assassinate the President. It was almost Cater whom John thought about killing but got caught with firearms in a Nashville airport in 1979. In March 1981, Mr. Hinckley fired six bullets towards then President Ronald Reagan. He hit the President, a police officer, a Secret Service Agent, and James Brady, the Press Secretary. The shooting of these four men lead to the Brady
