M. Rickert, "Bread and Bombs"

After terrorists kill people with poisoned a small town neighborhood becomes increasingly fearful of the foreign family that moves in.

(from Wastelands)

I put the helmet on and listened to it fly past. Not us. Not our town. Not tonight.

Overt in its allusions to 9/11 and the subsequent paranoia, this story is not a simple satire or an obvious fable. The already hazy logic of the adults is filtered through the murky, limited perspective of a fourth grader. Which means we don't get answers to a lot of our questions about what the hell exactly is going on in the world.
What Happened: Relentless terrorist attacks seem to have fragmented the US's infrastructure, with mail and information becoming limited (maybe?). Citizens act like planes are only flown by terrorists.
Destruct-O-Meter: 2. Far as I can tell, this is more of an Apocapinconvenience.