Never forget? Impossible.

Even the most reclusive, anti-American resident in this country has some image of the attacks etched in his or her mind. Those too young to remember need to be educated on the subject, and certainly it’ll never carry the same impact now that they live in a post-9/11 world. But most of us who saw it happen understand.

Most groups don’t actually fear people will forget 9/11, just that its lingering lessons will somehow be lost amid the political struggles of the day. Some of the most ardent defenders of this union will clutch onto that feeling of unity, the rally around the flag following the attacks. We were all one people once; what if we lose that?

Our hard-line Republicans lose sleep at night, worrying liberals will dissolve their narrative and with it, the necessity of constant security, surveillance and vigilance.

And how could Kevin Barrett and others prove an inside job if no one really cares how it happened anymore?

So we must never forget.

And we never will.

You’ll be reminded as you walk to class by Bascom’s 2,977 American flags marking those lost on 9/11.

You’ll be reminded by the front page of this paper.

You’re being reminded by the column you’re reading now.

You’ll be reminded by the candlelight vigil hosted by the College Republicans and co-sponsored by nearly every student organization on campus.

You’ll be reminded by practically everyone and everything you see or hear.

We’ll always remember.

But that’s all we do on this day. That’s all we’ve done. And that’s the greatest tragedy.

Every Sept. 11, the citizens of this nation gather in their churches, schools, community centers and houses and pay some heed to those who died. We mourn once more, and we vow to remember the events and how they changed America.

We bow our heads. We remain solemn. And we stand in silence.

But it’s still tooth-gnashing, uncertain, tension-filled silence.

This country constructed a narrative about the Sept. 11 attacks that was needed for the time: Our strength as a nation was challenged, our citizenry was sent into a panic and our way of life flickered before our very eyes. But we unified, we rose to the challenge and we rebuilt.

That’s not exactly how it unfolded, of course. Our Congress stood on the steps of the United States Capitol building, belting out “God Bless America,” but they turned up their partisan rancor until most came close to resembling savages.

We took the might of our military and pointed it directly at Al-Qaeda — meandering from the path on a side mission of little connection and mountains of added tragedy.

We suffered more tragedy at home and abroad and fought among ourselves as to who was responsible.

And on Sept. 11, we don’t mention any of it. We just stand in silence. The College Democrats and College Republicans will come together in a display of unity and solidarity before throwing themselves back into utter disarray and complacency. Liberals will stand with conservatives and remember the impact but ignore the resulting crater that further separated the two.

We are a nation still wounded, but instead of taking this day to dress and heal that wound, we simply apply new bandages.

It’s time we took them off for good.

The attack on America can be painted as a battle against “Islamo-Fascism” or, if you prefer grandeur, a brazen attack on freedom. It has been cited as a rallying point for the American spirit. It has been a vague reminder of everything we have built ourselves into.

But to treat this day only as a reminder of what we have been — as the term applied to it now, “Patriot Day,” certainly does — dilutes the power of this day. In reality, we were challenged on Sept. 11 by those who have seen us slowly drift from our original ideals of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. And in that time, we’ve vowed to defend this country and everything it stands for, but, by and large, without acknowledging how far we have moved from those ideals. Because of that grand omission, we’ve been moving further from our founding principals and find ourselves constantly teetering on the precipice of destruction.

So, it’s time we rewrote the story. If we truly intend to rebuild this country and restore its former greatness, we must treat 9/11 not as a day of mourning or remembrance, but as a rebirth, a recommitment. We will eventually have to alter the way we live, the way we see the world and the way this world sees us. And we have to do it now.

But that won’t happen if we just continue to remember. Eventually, all we’ll remember about this day is that we have to remember this day. Instead, we should reclaim this day along with our country. If this is a country reborn, then Sept. 11 should be crafted as our second Independence Day. A day when we perform service for our fellow man. A day when we discuss what our country should be aiming for. A day we hold back our critics and enemies by proving our dedication to freedom and opportunity didn’t die on that day, but was renewed.

Perhaps we need more time to grieve. And I understand that. But I don’t want to hear those words “We must never forget” again. Because if that’s all we say 10 years from now, we really have forgotten something far more important.

Jason Smathers ([email protected]) is a senior majoring in history.