The ideological battle is the battle to define the lessons of 9/11. On one side stands the Vietnam-era left, which blames the United States (and in particular, its support for Israel) for the attacks of 9/11 and suggests that the American response to 9/11 demonstrated our boorish egocentrism and bigoted misinterpretation of world politics. On the other side stands the right, which sees Islamism, not American exceptionalism, as our true enemy. In the center, wavering, stands the bulk of the American people.Despite (or perhaps because of) my more "progressive" philosophical views--you know, that whole postmodern deconstructionist thing--I am politically what I would call a Russell Kirk conservative, which is basically what conservatives used to look like before they shed their fears of unlimited government and adopted a messianic quest to make the world safe for Democratic Capitalism. And there are many on the political right, myself included, who think the causes of 9/11 are many and complex and that our reaction to 9/11 has been, well, bad.
The legacy of 9/11 remains in doubt. A century from now, 9/11 will be seen either as the death knell of a crumbling civilization or a rallying cry for a renewed, American-led movement for freedom. The choice remains in our hands.
Shapiro doesn't seem to see that though as it doesn't fit into his framework of liberals belief this and conservatives believe that. If he keeps composing articles like this, he'll go far as a conservative columnist.