My 9/11 memorial

Today, several folks have posted 9/11 remembrances on FB. I’m fine with that. We should remember the people who died as a result of the plane crashes, as well as their families and friends. But don’t stop there. Also remember how this tragedy was cynically exploited for political purposes by folks like Rudy Giuliani and George Bush. How it was dishonestly used to justify the US invasion and military occupation of Iraq*, the torture and abuse of innocent Afghanis, and the continued incarceration without trials of men at the US military base in Guantanamo.

Americans are rightly outraged by the 9/11 terrorism. But we should also be outraged at the atrocities committed by America in the name of the victims of 9/11. We should work to make sure another 9/11 never happens, and we should work to make sure our emotions are never again hijacked for political and financial profit.

*15 of the 19 hijackers were from Saudi Arabia, a US ally. Zero were from Iraq. Thousands of Americans were killed or injured in the illegal and immoral invasion of Iraq. Tens of thousands of innocent Iraqis were killed or injured as a direct consequence of the US invasion. ISIL/Daesh arose as a direct result of the US invasion and military occupation of Iraq.

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