Americans Predict Major Terrorist Attack On United States In Next Decade

A new Harris Poll measures how many people expect various events will happen in the next decade, in the next 50 years and in the rest of the 21st century. Large majorities believe that all 15 events on the list will happen eventually, and that many of them will happen sometime in this century. However, only one of them -- a major terrorist attack on the U.S. -- is seen by a majority (54 percent) as likely to happen in the next 10 years.

Other events that are seen as likely to occur in the next 10 years by sizable minorities are electing a female president (35 percent), China replacing the U.S. as the world's most powerful economic country (30 percent), a biological or chemical attack on the U.S. (29 percent), and that global warming and climate change will have a big impact (22 percent). 

At the other (least likely) end of the spectrum, very few people expect that in the next decade there will be an end to the obesity epidemic (7 percent), a nuclear war (8 percent), a revolution overthrowing the U.S. government (8 percent), or that smoking tobacco will almost disappear (9 percent).

These are some of the results of The Harris Poll of 2,331 adults surveyed online between December 6 and 13 by Harris Interactive.

Majorities of all adults believe that the following are likely to occur in the next 50 years:

  • A major terrorist attack on the U.S. (79 percent).
  • A female will be president (82 percent).
  • China will replace the U.S. as the world's most powerful economic country (62 percent).
  • An attack on the U.S. using chemical or biological weapons (60 percent).
  • Most energy in the U.S. will come from renewable sources (52 percent).
  • A cure for cancer (52 percent).

Majorities of all adults believe that the following are likely to happen in the next 90 years:

  • Global warming and climate change will have a big impact (70 percent).
  • A new political party will replace the Republicans or the Democrats as one of the two largest parties (62 percent).
  • A massive water shortage (63 percent).
  • Life expectancy will be 100 years or more (63 percent).
  • Most people (75 percent) believe that that eventually human life on Earth will end, but only 19 percent think that will happen in the 21st century.

Featured

New Products

  • EasyGate SPT and SPD

    EasyGate SPT SPD

    Security solutions do not have to be ordinary, let alone unattractive. Having renewed their best-selling speed gates, Cominfo has once again demonstrated their Art of Security philosophy in practice — and confirmed their position as an industry-leading manufacturers of premium speed gates and turnstiles.

  • Luma x20

    Luma x20

    Snap One has announced its popular Luma x20 family of surveillance products now offers even greater security and privacy for home and business owners across the globe by giving them full control over integrators’ system access to view live and recorded video. According to Snap One Product Manager Derek Webb, the new “customer handoff” feature provides enhanced user control after initial installation, allowing the owners to have total privacy while also making it easy to reinstate integrator access when maintenance or assistance is required. This new feature is now available to all Luma x20 users globally. “The Luma x20 family of surveillance solutions provides excellent image and audio capture, and with the new customer handoff feature, it now offers absolute privacy for camera feeds and recordings,” Webb said. “With notifications and integrator access controlled through the powerful OvrC remote system management platform, it’s easy for integrators to give their clients full control of their footage and then to get temporary access from the client for any troubleshooting needs.”

  • Unified VMS

    AxxonSoft introduces version 2.0 of the Axxon One VMS. The new release features integrations with various physical security systems, making Axxon One a unified VMS. Other enhancements include new AI video analytics and intelligent search functions, hardened cybersecurity, usability and performance improvements, and expanded cloud capabilities