OPINION:
On Sept. 11, 2001, I was in Tallinn, Estonia, when al Qaeda terrorists murdered nearly 3,000 people in Manhattan, at the Pentagon, and in southwestern Pennsylvania.
When I learned of the attacks, my thoughts went immediately to the Windows on the World entertainment and dining rooms on the 106th and 107th floors of the World Trade Center’s North Tower, where I had been with senior Estonian officials just a few months before. My mind raced in shock as I thought of the employees and tourists there, helpless to defend themselves from a nightmarish terrorist attack.
More than two decades later, the lessons of how we responded to those attacks are embedded in our national security strategy. The world is more interconnected than ever, including through cyberspace. Our enemies can reach us despite great geographic distance, which once gave this country a measure of security.
That’s why the U.S. military and intelligence community are relentlessly focused on detecting and preempting threats to the homeland.
So many things we have learned from 9/11 continue to resonate, but three in particular stand out for me.
First, on an infamous day that took on a significance no one could have anticipated when they put their head to the pillow the night before, heroes were everywhere. Hundreds of New York Fire Department and law enforcement officers lost their lives that day because they rushed toward danger to help those in need. Courageous passengers on United Flight 93 rallied to prevent al Qaeda terrorists from crashing the plane into the Capitol.
As Ukrainian parliamentarian Kira Rudik recently reminded us: “History is made by ordinary people. They become heroes and the future depends on them.”
Second, we must be prepared to embrace the unexpected when it is painful just as much as when it is joyful. That involves seeing the world as it is, not as we wish it were.
There were countless times in my career when my CIA colleagues and I told the White House, agency directors and elected representatives from both parties unpleasant truths that they needed to hear.
That’s because from our very first day at the CIA, we were taught that the truth matters. Inscribed in stone in the lobby of CIA headquarters are the words “And Ye Shall Know the Truth and the Truth Shall Make You Free.”
The best leaders I served under were always ready to challenge their own assumptions, even if that meant overhauling their established views. We should all be open to receiving new information and incorporating it into what we’re witnessing.
Situational awareness results from being honest about what is happening around us. That enables us to be prepared, to ask questions, and to make the best decisions about how to react.
The goal is to spot and preempt threats way out “left of boom,” either by “getting off the X” where something bad is going to happen or confronting the threat head-on, as those brave Flight 93 passengers did.
The third lesson my family and I have taken from Sept. 11 is to celebrate every day with loved ones. Each day we have together is a reason to be thankful. If there is one thing I learned from the loss of friends and colleagues I served with at the CIA, colleagues remembered forever as stars on the CIA’s Memorial Wall, it’s that we should seek to make the most of our time together.
Be aware of your surroundings. If you see something, say something. Take your personal security seriously. Remember: Today might be the day that matters more to you and others when you might have to step up and do something unexpectedly heroic.
As we approach another presidential campaign season, it’s also worth remembering how in the days and months after 9/11, political polarization wilted away — at least for a short time. Countries around the world rallied to our side. Our NATO allies for the first and only time in alliance history invoked Article 5 for collective defense. Together, Americans renewed their common bond, which increased our collective resilience.
And to the families of the victims and the families of our first responders who made the ultimate sacrifice, let’s remember they do not get a day off from their trauma. They carry their grief with them every moment of every day. They deserve our everlasting sympathy, respect, admiration and support.
⦁ Daniel N. Hoffman is a retired clandestine services officer and former chief of station with the Central Intelligence Agency. His combined 30 years of government service included high-level overseas and domestic positions at the CIA. He has been a Fox News contributor since May 2018. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DanielHoffmanDC.
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