Real lesson of 9/11: Laden's aim was to put US in a never-ending conflict

I went to war to avenge my brother's death. But the only person I truly wanted to kill died 17 years ago

It has taken me a while to realize something.

Seventeen years ago, I saw a picture of Mohamed Atta for the first time, and my blood boiled from the sound of his voice emanating from the television, as he said over the airplane’s intercom system: “We have some planes, just stay quiet and you’ll be O.K. We are returning to the airport.” Instead, he crashed it between the 93rd and 99th floors of the World Trade Center’s north tower.

My 23-year-old brother, James, was on the 102nd floor.

Staring at that picture of Atta, I would have visions of what