Legacy

It’s been 23 years. The changes are so embedded now that we may not think much about them. Opinions may vary on whether or not the terrorists won. But can we at least agree that, in terms of battles and wars, they won that battle?

Look what 9/11 spawned: Homeland Security, the TSA and its security checkpoints and the complete line of approved products, commitment to unwinnable wars in faraway places, billions of dollars squandered and numerous lives lost or upended with gross, life-altering injuries to body and mind.

The benchmark may be that we haven’t had another attack since, but is that really a measure of success? Granted, how often will anyone ever again mount such an extensive and effective assault on our own soil? But we’ve now been sucked into the eternal vortex known as holy war. In many eyes, we are still the devil, and we will be unable to extricate ourselves from the endless sporadic events and the geopolitical chess match that keep us engaged and looking over our shoulder.

And to think that someone’s god ordains all this.