11 September 2009

Eight years ago at this time in the morning, I was in the middle of a long run with my understrength platoon of infantry at Fort Drum. An hour later, I would be sitting in the parking lot, trying to rehydrate for a urinalysis, when I would hear the news that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center. Three years after that, I would be descending into Beirut's international airport for the first of three years spent living and studying the Arabic-speaking world -- an enterprise more sparked by my experiences in Iraq than by the events eight years ago. Today, meanwhile, I am off to the Middle East for another month or so of research. I will be blogging while traveling, but not at the rate that I do while stateside.

Wherever you are today, though, take a moment to remember all those killed in the attacks of 11 September 2001 and in the wars that followed them. If you're looking for something to read, meanwhile, try this New Yorker profile of Rick Rescorla.