I think it's time that we forget 9/11. Seriously. Let's just forget the damn thing ever happened. The continual jabber from Bush about how he "will never forget the lessons of 9/11" (notwithstanding the fact that those lessons are as protean as all hell) and the relentless use of 9/11 as a knee-jerk excuse for virtually any military action taken (or not taken) has rendered it little more than an ideological weapon. More importantly, however, the unquestioned assumption that it is inherently good to keep the visceral and emotional shock of any tragedy close to our hearts "substitutes memory for morality." When it comes to the affairs of a nation, it is sometimes necessary to introduce a little Verfremdungseffekt into the mix, otherwise we run the risk of perpetuating nothing but our own fear and appetite for revenge. And that's not good.