Author James Fallows reflects on the legacy of 9/11, 25 years after the terrorist attacks, and argues that while some positive changes occurred, such as a sense of national unity and cooperation among countries, many negative developments have also been permanent or are still unfolding, including the expansion of the surveillance state, increased militarization of local police, and ongoing "forever wars". Fallows notes that before 9/11, there was no Department of Homeland Security, TSA, or ICE, and that these changes were bipartisan and incremental. He suggests that the US may have an opportunity to reconsider some of these developments in the future.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-06,
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same event (that is the story summary below).
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Too much of that unifying sentiment faded too fast.
left criticizing the loss of unity
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Before 9/11, there was no Department of Homeland Security. No TSA. No ICE.
right describing pre-9/11 state of affairs as less secure
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Much of it was bipartisan. Most of it was step-by-step.
left criticizing the bipartisan nature of post-9/11 measures
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Let us hope that 25 years from now, the U.S. has reckoned more seriously with who we are, and who we want to become, than we have done so far.
left expressing hope for change
Leaning score -0.55 for article 5800 (high confidence, 4 verified quotes) · logged 2026-09-06
We live through history's turning points, but with no idea which way history will turn.
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history → live → idea
, the attack on Pearl Harbor, a date which will live in infamy, marked the end of U.S. isolation, and the beginning of permanent engagement around the world.
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which → live → world
At the time, it seemed to change everything.
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it → seem → everything
But on this 25th anniversary, here is my sense of changes we might have hoped would be permanent, but weren't, and others that future generations may strive to change back.
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generations → hop → that
The worst of times can bring out the best in people.
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worst → bring → people
"We are all Americans," as the French newspaper Le Monde put it.
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newspaper → put → it
For the only time in NATO's history, its member countries all voted to come to a stricken ally's defense.
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countries → vote → defense
In the U.S., people honored our first responders and ordinary brave fellow citizens.
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people → honor → responders
President George W. Bush, who had been caught unawares by the attack, went just days later to Washington's Islamic Center.
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who → catch → Center
There, he reminded the entire country that while the attackers were Muslim, Islam itself was not the enemy: "In our anger and emotion, our fellow Americans must treat each other with respect," he said.
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he → remind → respect
Too much of that unifying sentiment faded too fast.
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much → unify → sentiment
And too little of what lastingly changed in America has received the awareness and scrutiny it deserves.
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it → change → awareness
Those functions were carried out more modestly, with less overreach.
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functions → carry → overreach
Before 9/11, local police in the U.S. were not kitted out in combat gear as if fighting in Fallujah.
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police → kitte → Fallujah
That is because before 9/11, there was no war in Iraq (for which 9/11 was the excuse, though no Iraqis were involved), and nothing like the "forever wars" that have followed.
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that → be → wars
And as we look back, we see a country that survived an attack and avoided a repetition.
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that → look → repetition
But it is also a country whose daily life and civic culture those attackers managed to change.
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attackers → manage → life
The U.S. has had other hinges of history that turned in the wrong direction: In the late 1800s, with the turn against Reconstruction and equal rights after the Civil War; in the 1920s and '30s, when the U.S. closed its doors to the world, even as Nazis and fascists rose to power elsewhere.
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Nazis → have → power
Let us hope that 25 years from now, the U.S. has reckoned more seriously with who we are, and who we want to become, than we have done so far.
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we → let → who
Remembering 9/11: Where tragedy left its marks
Remembering 9/11: Andrew Card on the moment everything changed
Remembering 9/11: Robert De Niro on helping revive Lower Manhattan after September 11
Remembering 9/11: When Gander provided safe haven in a time of crisis
Remembering 9/11: "Come From Away": Transforming tragedy into art, darkness into light
For more info:
Story produced by Annie Iezzi.
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Gander → remember → Iezzi
