Niall Ferguson: Osama bin Ladens posthume Sieg

Writing in *The Free Press*, [Niall Ferguson](https://www.hoover.org/profiles/niall-ferguson) chronicles how his understanding of the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, has shifted over the twenty-four years since their occurrence. As the editors of *The Free Press* note in their introduction to the piece, in 2001, “Ferguson wrote that the attack was a result of complex historical trends—post-2000 economic downturn, the rise of American imperialism, and the fragmentation of ethnic pluralism in Western nations.” In his essay today, Ferguson says, “It has taken me all these years to understand that 9/11 really was a clash of civilizations. And it has taken me until this week finally to face the reality that ours is losing.” Fergsuon’s sobering appraisal of the aftermath of 9/11 points to the rise of antisemitism in the US and UK, particularly among younger generations but spanning the political far left and far right, as a sign that consensus on fundamental civilizational values has frayed in the West. Ferguson also relates how additional reflection on the perspective of his wife and Hoover Institution colleague, Research Fellow [Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://www.hoover.org/profiles/ayaan-hirsi-ali), has changed his view of the role of “religious zealotry” in motivating 9/11 and subsequent acts of terrorism.