I was still young yet, I didn't fully understand who had hit us or why. It was terrifying to see something destroyed I had come to recognize mostly through the silver screen. Someone, that day, had the chutzpah to attack us, the super-power in the World, and it felt like it couldn't possibly be true.
But it was no movie - it was very real.
We said then, never forget. Not to let it change us as Americans. If only we could see ourselves now.
I've come to realize a great many things in moments, days, and now years since. About why it happened, and yes, what we need to do to stop it.
The first is that terrorism knows no rest, no peace. It's constantly devoted to our destruction. It does not care for laws, borders or negotiation. It does not care who, or what, is destroyed or abused in the execution of it's malicious persecution. There is no point trying to negotiate with it. If we do not fight where it originates, it will not stop there, it will eventually come within our borders.
The second is that the root cause of terrorism, and why it's continues exist, is education.
It starts by being ingrained into state education systems across the world. Even in countries where we have strong alliances with, the education system promotes the hatred of the West. And it's of course rampant in the region we are trying to heal.
People don't realize it's part of everything - from school systems to morning kids shows. The effort to indoctrinate hatred is immense and widespread. It's why these people were willing to dance in the streets on 9/11.
So long as there are those that will not conform to their beliefs- they will continue to hate us. But that is part of the problem with fundamental Islam in the first place, they will always continue to hate other religions until they are the sole religion on the planet left. That is their purpose they have to fundamentally fulfill.
UNWRA itself has become nothing more than a tool. A reflection of the dominance of the anti-West faction that has now taken over Worldly organizations. They are not just promoting the same type of radicalization and jihadism, but being used as bases for terrorist activity. UNWRA even went so far as to return weapons to "the authorities," Hamas. That speaks to an overall sympathy to terrorism.
And here in the States, it's often promoted instead of scorned, because of our own morally flawed educational system - which have become dominated by those willing to abuse their profession for the sake of social justice themselves. Tenured professors teach terrorists as equivalent to the 'Sons of Liberty' - the egregious revision of history turning many of those founders in their graves.
So now, we have generation upon generation of millions of people who hate us even more. We are losing the war on Terror not just because we've been unwilling to fight it, but because many in our society agree with the notion. Just look at the 21% or so willingly nodding like a bunch of bobble heads at the thought of giving a NUCLEAR WEAPON to the leading state sponsor of terrorism, Iran. Even if Iran doesn't use one itself, which is likely in order to keep a sense of plausible deniability, the chance of them giving a weapon to a proxy like Hezbollah, to say detonate in a Tel Aviv marketplace, is almost certain.
And with such porous borders, where we have no clue who is coming or going into and out of our own country, we are just asking for the inevitable. At least Israel has border security, it has a fence, it has leadership willing to identify the issue, and it has the gall to make sure it's looking into possible suspects (instead of dragging a large net over it's own citizens). Our oceans can only protect us so long.
If anything the last few years has taught us, is that the War against Terrorism isn't over, merely, it's going into the next round.
It's a round that may seem like things are stacked against us. Where a lawless President, Congress and Judicial branch wants to stamp out patriotism and the founding principal of our nation : religious liberty.
But we shouldn't lose hope - even when it seems even the government is stacked against you. Look at the Egyptian people, who finally had enough, and rid themselves of the Islamic Brotherhood. Sometimes, it just takes people getting tired of things and standing up, like Al-Sissi and those that supported him.
On a more local level, we've had our own victories.
Yes, it's only one small fight, as everyone knows there is a great deal of work yet to do, but our communities have shown the resolve and planning needed to protect our rights as Americans.
It's no surprise that new leaders and unexpected heroes have risen to these great challenges - including in foreign lands.
So, while yes, it feels like we are losing the war against Terrorism, and yes, our representatives seem to be failing us, it's not over yet. It's not over until we say it is. I refuse to believe Americans will let those innocent people in those towers, and those that fought for them and freedom in Iraq, die in vein. We will not lie down for thugs and tyrants.
Americans, no matter how many times you knock us down, we will get right back up. You're just going to make us that much angrier when we do.
