When news that a commercial airliner had crashed into one of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center first flashed across television screens on Sept. 11, 2001, we, as a nation, were saddened at the tragic accident that had occurred. Then, as news reports continued to roll from the scene, we watched in horror as a second plane flew into the second tower and a third into the Pentagon, and we heard news that a fourth plane had crashed in Pennsylvania. And we knew that these were no accidents, but a part of a deliberate terrorist attack on the United States.

Life as we knew it would never be the same.

The attacks that occurred that fateful day 14 years ago not only propelled this nation into two wars — one in Iraq and the other in Afghanistan, two conflicts from which we have yet to extricate ourselves completely — but they also changed the way Americans go about living our everyday lives.

If you don’t believe this is true, venture into an airport and wind your way through the security which you now must pass just to board an airplane. Contrast that with the days before 9/11, when you could accompany a family member or friend to the gate, carry liquids that you brought from home with you on the plane, and even wear your shoes while passing through a security gate.

Yes, our lives have changed because the world is a different place than it was back then.

In political contests subsequent to those attacks, voters have sought to know which candidate will best ensure the safety and security of our country against other attacks. Even the current debate over the proposed nuclear deal with Iran, the flood of refugees from the Middle East, particularly Syria, and the brazen acts by ISIS, the self-proclaimed Islamic State, are rarely talked about without the specter of terrorism coming up. Closer to home, just this week a federal program here in Minnesota was being touted as a step forward in keeping Somali youth in our state from being recruited to become terrorists.

This is our post-9/11 world.

Yes, Sept. 11 has changed our lives. But on this day, the anniversary of those attacks, we should remember first and foremost the victims of the attacks. Excluding the hijackers, there were 2,974 fatalities that day — 246 on the four planes, 125 at the Pentagon and 2,603 in New York City, in the towers and on the ground. In their memory, let us continue to fight to keep this nation safe that no such attack shall happen again.

 

— Owatonna People’s Press, Sept. 10