10 years in the shadow of 9/11
Here's my memory about the Sept. 11 attacks.
That morning I was watching Harry Belafonte on "Today" as I prepared for registration in my senior year at Harvard. Belafonte was talking about how Americans can't be naive to how its policies affect the world, and that one day we will pay for them.
A few minutes later, Matt Lauer said an airplane hit the North Tower.
And that's where I sit with 9/11.
Not the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, in which thousands of people were murdered, victims whose memories must be honored and cherished.
I'm talking about 9/11, the brand name that was created for a campaign of old-fashioned fear, war profiteering, erosion of civil liberty, thought suppression and racial/religious hatred wrapped up in patriotism. The 9/11 brand that made flag ribbons and lapel pins so necessary.
The 9/11 that said I couldn't say too loudly that what if these attacks were chickens coming home to roost? The 9/11 that took the realpolitik surrounding the attacks -- the "Why did they attack us?" question -- and replied, "Because they hate our freedom."
The 9/11 that decided to refuse history and simply label Osama Bin Laden a murderous madman, twirling his moustache, nothing more. The 9/11 that dismisses that an attack on our financial and military capitals had no symbolic or historical meaning, that dismisses the attackers' reasons. The 9/11 that refused to look at the path to murderous radicalism, and simply said that's what Islam teaches.
The 9/11 that empowered our government to create a bigger security state, with an even bigger beaurocracy while weakening our security agencies. The 9/11 that said we'll defeat al-Qaida by invading Iraq and taking down Saddam Hussein for still-unproven weapons of mass destruction, further destabilizing the region while diverting from the justified war in Afghanistan to depose the Taliban and capture Bin Laden. The 9/11 that tried to make martyrs of Pat Tillman and Jessica Lynch, only to find the lies couldn't hold back the truth.
The 9/11 that says I shouldn't bring all this up today. That says we "can't let the terrorists win" even though we're the ones issuing headscarf bans and full-body searches on 4-year-olds. That gave the media more fear-stories to spin.
All these things matter and don't matter when seen next to Sept. 11. The people killed in the Sept. 11 attacks -- those who died in the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and aboard Flight 93 -- are still dead. The families left behind still grieve. The firefighters and police who risked their health in that smoke and dust, they still suffer. The uniformed men and women who have fought in our two wars, still they fight and die.
In them, and those who strive for peace and understanding in this world, Sept. 11 lives on in the true American spirit. The spirit that aspires to Roosevelt's four freedoms: of speech, of faith, from want, and from fear.
Now everyone enjoy their NFL Sunday, OK? We're still here. We're still here.
That morning I was watching Harry Belafonte on "Today" as I prepared for registration in my senior year at Harvard. Belafonte was talking about how Americans can't be naive to how its policies affect the world, and that one day we will pay for them.
Click to viewA few minutes later, Matt Lauer said an airplane hit the North Tower.
And that's where I sit with 9/11.
Not the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, in which thousands of people were murdered, victims whose memories must be honored and cherished.
I'm talking about 9/11, the brand name that was created for a campaign of old-fashioned fear, war profiteering, erosion of civil liberty, thought suppression and racial/religious hatred wrapped up in patriotism. The 9/11 brand that made flag ribbons and lapel pins so necessary.
The 9/11 that said I couldn't say too loudly that what if these attacks were chickens coming home to roost? The 9/11 that took the realpolitik surrounding the attacks -- the "Why did they attack us?" question -- and replied, "Because they hate our freedom."
The 9/11 that decided to refuse history and simply label Osama Bin Laden a murderous madman, twirling his moustache, nothing more. The 9/11 that dismisses that an attack on our financial and military capitals had no symbolic or historical meaning, that dismisses the attackers' reasons. The 9/11 that refused to look at the path to murderous radicalism, and simply said that's what Islam teaches.
The 9/11 that empowered our government to create a bigger security state, with an even bigger beaurocracy while weakening our security agencies. The 9/11 that said we'll defeat al-Qaida by invading Iraq and taking down Saddam Hussein for still-unproven weapons of mass destruction, further destabilizing the region while diverting from the justified war in Afghanistan to depose the Taliban and capture Bin Laden. The 9/11 that tried to make martyrs of Pat Tillman and Jessica Lynch, only to find the lies couldn't hold back the truth.
The 9/11 that says I shouldn't bring all this up today. That says we "can't let the terrorists win" even though we're the ones issuing headscarf bans and full-body searches on 4-year-olds. That gave the media more fear-stories to spin.
All these things matter and don't matter when seen next to Sept. 11. The people killed in the Sept. 11 attacks -- those who died in the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and aboard Flight 93 -- are still dead. The families left behind still grieve. The firefighters and police who risked their health in that smoke and dust, they still suffer. The uniformed men and women who have fought in our two wars, still they fight and die.
In them, and those who strive for peace and understanding in this world, Sept. 11 lives on in the true American spirit. The spirit that aspires to Roosevelt's four freedoms: of speech, of faith, from want, and from fear.
Now everyone enjoy their NFL Sunday, OK? We're still here. We're still here.