On September 10, 2001, the United States was not at war with any nation. The budget was in surplus. The World Trade Center stood at the southern end of Manhattan. Three thousand people who would die the next day were alive.
On September 10, 2026, the United States is at war with Iran. The ceasefire that governs that war expires in 26 days. Eighteen US service members have died. The President called the country he is at war with by the wrong name today. The Guantanamo trials for the planners of what happens tomorrow are scheduled for 2028.
Les visiteurs peuvent accéder à un musée commémoratif autour des bassins, derrière la chute d’eau. Tout autour se trouve un parapet séparant les visiteurs des chutes d’eau. Il porte l’inscription du nom de toutes les victimes des attentats du World Trade Center, gravé sur du bronze. De plus, sur les noms de victimes, il est possible d’observer de nombreuses roses que les employés du site déposent le jour de l’anniversaire de cette victime.
WHAT TWENTY-FIVE YEARS DID NOT CHANGE
The families of the 2,977 people killed on September 11, 2001 have waited 25 years for trials. They are still waiting. The specific people responsible for planning the attacks — Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and others at Guantanamo Bay — have not been tried. The military commission proceedings have been delayed by legal challenges, procedural disputes, and the specific constitutional questions that arise when the government attempts to try defendants using evidence obtained through torture. 25 years. No trials.
WHAT THE WARS PRODUCED
The 25 years between September 10, 2001 and September 10, 2026 produced:
▸ The Afghanistan war: 2001-2021; 2,461 US service members dead; Taliban in control since August 2021
▸ The Iraq War: 2003-2011 (major combat), 2014-present (advisory and counter-ISIS); 4,421 US service members dead in major combat
▸ The Global War on Terror: operations in more than 75 countries; documented in the Costs of War project
▸ The Iran war: February 28, 2026 to present; 18 US service members dead; Day 34 of a ceasefire that expires in 26 days
September 10, 2001 was a Tuesday. September 10, 2026 is a Thursday. Between those two Tuesdays is twenty-five years, two major wars, one ongoing war, 2,977 people killed in the attacks, 6,900+ US service members killed in the responses, and Guantanamo trials scheduled for 2028. That is what twenty-five years looks like from September 10.
TOMORROW
Tomorrow is September 11, 2026. The ONYX edition tomorrow will cover the 25th anniversary at the weight it requires.
| CONFIDENCE: HIGH | September 11 2001 historical facts, 2977 killed, Afghanistan and Iraq war death tolls, Taliban August 2021 control, Guantanamo trials 2028 from established confirmed public record. |
SOURCES
▸ Established public record — September 11 2001 and 25 years of aftermath
