It is difficult to believe that a generation has now elapsed since the horror of 9/11. Looking around, our nation seems not to have learned the lessons of that day. Worse yet, we seem not to remember who was responsible.
Even today, 25 years later, the magnitude of the attack is still staggering.
There were 2,977 people murdered that day by the adherents of Islam. Millions more had their lives forever upended.
Then, as now, the Islamists wanted America destroyed. Perhaps they thought toppling buildings could achieve that end? They took advantage of America’s welcoming history and our liberties to kill and destroy. Maybe they thought shedding the blood of civilians would make the rest of us kneel before their false god?
That evening, as the nation grappled to understand what happened, there was a palpable fear that America had been dealt a crippling blow. Fortunately, the horror of 9/11 gave way to the steady resolve of 9/12: America would not be cowed by Islamic terrorists.
The phrase “Never Forget” makes the rounds this time every year with dramatic pre- and post- attack images of the World Trade Center, but the slogan feels empty.
The post-9/11 “War on Terror” was a branding misdirection. Rather than name Islam as the enemy, we were left as a nation fighting the vague notion of a cowardly tactic. Political correctness and simpering politicians sought to send down the memory hole any reminder of who wanted to destroy America.
On the 25th anniversary of that horrible day, there are those in our country carrying out the terrorists’ ends. I do not mean that as a rhetorical device. We literally have Muslim imams calling for the destruction of our nation and the end of our republic; not on some distant shores but from inside our country. And we have American politicians eagerly defending them; some are even enabling them.
Islamic groups even in Texas are openly supporting terrorist organizations that exist to conduct jihad against Western civilization.
Too many Republicans have ignored the Islamic threat, afraid of being labeled as intolerant or politically incorrect. Worse, though, are the Democrats who find common cause with the anti-American rhetoric of the jihadis. (Pity the purple-haired lesbian waving “Free Palestine” placards outside city hall when she realizes the intersectional alliance between Marxists and Muslims was a one-sided affair all along.)
In a fallen world, attacks on our way of life should be expected. But we should not be expected to tolerate those who aid and abet the enemy.
Those who brought their war to America never forgot their goal; they just changed tactics. Islamic communities operating under Sharia mandates here will be no different than the expanding—if unofficial—no-go zones in France and elsewhere in Europe.
This new generation of Islamists remains committed to the fight of their fathers and grandfathers. They want to bring down more than the Twin Towers; they want to take out America.
So what will we do? Will we resign ourselves to the inevitability of an Islamic tyranny? Will we shrug our shoulders and shuffle along to the cemetery where Western Europe is being buried?
Patriots must rise up. We must rededicate ourselves to the founding ideals of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We must fight for what America can be. We must, in the words of the Old Testament exhortation, be “strong and courageous.” We must remember what happened 25 years ago. We must never forget.
The choice we make today about what we do tomorrow will shape the future of our Republic.
