I usually try not to get swept up in the topic of the moment. Most just aren’t worth the time, but this one is different. I am concerned about some of the ways in which we have chosen to memorialize the September 11 attacks. I have to wonder if by going on and on about how they affected us, we are encouraging today’s would-be terrorists that the attacks were successful and should be repeated. Certainly the heroes who responded on that day deserve our thanks and our praise. Certainly the families of those who died deserve to have their sacrifice recognized. Do we do any of them service by lamenting the ways in which our enemies succeeded in harming us?

We should remember, but we should do so in a way that identifies our enemies and strengthens our resolve to fight them. It is time to move on. Screaming in pain is music to the ears of a tormentor. It is time to stop! It is also time to speak plainly about who was responsible. We are not at war with terror. Terror is a method of warfare. Attacking the method is foolish. We are at war with the users of such methods; specifically the Islamic radicals who choose to use it against us. These are the things we should never forget when we remember September 11.