In the aftermath of the attacks of September 11, 2001, how many people would be happy to place some of the blame on the United States and extend a hand of peace to Arabs and Muslims? While most Americans were ready to take up arms and seek revenge for the grave injustice perpetrated against the United States, Naomi Shihab Nye courageously stood against popular opinion and argued that peace, not more violence, was needed. During such an emotionally charged time, Nye does well to use that emotion for his own purposes, which is part of the reason why his argumentative essay, To Any Could-Be Terrorists, works effectively as a whole. He also does a great job of using his unique heritage and perspective to establish a strong sense of credibility, which helps further his argument. However, his essay falls short on the feasibility of the solution, as well as suffering from a release period that had a rather poor sense of timing. Perhaps one of the greatest strengths of Nye's essay is found, ironically, not in his essay, but rather in his personal life. As a writer of Palestinian-American descent, she is uniquely positioned to present a perspective that doesn't often appear in American literature. She grew up in Jerusalem in the 1970s; the city at the center of countless culture wars over the centuries (317). As a result, Nye possesses an understanding of the complexities of conflict between cultures to a degree that surpasses the clear majority of contemporary writers. Because he spent much of his formative years in such a turbulent region, he also has significant experience with the violence that can occur when two cultures fail to reconcile their differences. This makes her a unique person... middle of paper... outbursts, a plea for peace would most likely fall on deaf ears. Only recently, after a measurable period of time had passed, would Nye's argument begin to have a significant effect on his audience. As you can see, Nye combines many elements of logical argument to construct an effective essay. When you finish reading the work, it's almost as if Nye has left a sense of optimism in the reader. Although he may be oversimplifying the problem, one can ignore this fact, because his main purpose in this essay is to convince his audience that the possibility for peace certainly exists; we just have to work at it a little more. If everyone truly “Finds another way to live,” a way in which people behave more kindly and thoughtfully toward one another, then maybe we could finally have some peace. (321).