September 11, 2001, started off like any other Tuesday. I was driving to work, listing to the same old classic rock, probably reminding myself to call my brother later and wish him a happy birthday.

Only rarely do the most memorable or infamous days declare themselves ahead of time. As a nation we’ve been shocked by two Kennedy assassinations,  Watergate, the 1980 Olympic hockey victory over the Soviet Union, the Challenger and Columbia, the fall of the Berlin Wall and more--just in the last 50 years. Perhaps only the era’s greatest achievement, that of landing on the moon, was anticipated by more than a handful of people.

When the radio mentioned something about a plane hitting the World Trade Center that morning, I picked up my cell phone and called a friend.

Yeah, the current crop of phones are more versatile. But how much have we really changed since the sudden and deliberate attack, ten years ago? Mobile communications, laptops, DirecTV, classic rock stations--such things dominated life then and now.

Well, the classic rock bit is probably just me.

In retrospect it’s easy to see naivete in the before, wisdom after. And you can, to some extent, consider our ignorance (as a population) of al-Qaida before the attack a bit shortsighted. After all, they’d struck at us before. First Homeland Security chief Tom Ridge may elicit some “what were we thinking” memories for his color coded threat levels and worried public warnings before every holiday or national event.

It’s difficult, however, to see any wisdom gained over the course of a decade. I’m sure it’s there--in military operations or anti-terror research. Oh, the world has changed. And yes, we developed a renewed respect for the work of firefighters, police officers and other first responders. Most obviously, the process of boarding planes and traveling by air has become much more aggravating.

No longer can we pour vodka into water bottles and tote it past security...um, not that I’ve ever tried.

But George W. Bush took heat for addressing questions about bombing Afghanistan while hitting golf balls. Barack Obama takes the same for heading off on vacation while jobs remain a pressing issue. And Congress balked at financial aid for first responders suffering long term illness from their efforts on that day.

The same elected officials who bundled organizations together into something called Homeland Security, created new layers of bureacracy and decided to pay for the war through debt now complain about big government and imbalanced budgets.

Our political culture, in other words, remains the same.

What stands out for me, when I look back over ten years of conflict, is the odd similarity between al-Qaida’s misunderstanding of American resolve and our own government’s.

You see, the terrorist group believed us so soft, we might cave after one deadly attack. Prior to Pearl Harbor, many in Japan felt the same way.

In 1942, Franklin Roosevelt delivered a speech in which he said “we can take it; and what’s more, we can give it back.”

During that war the government distributed gold star banners to families of the dead. They sent film crews along on B-17s, so folks at home could see--in the 1944 documentary The Memphis Belle--American fliers fighting and dying. Correspondent Ernie Pyle wrote in one dispatch from Italy “dead men have been coming down the mountain all evening.”

The government reminded us, over and over, that war meant sacrifice and that we were all involved.

This time, in a much less costly (in terms of casualties) fight, they seek to shield us. Yes, we know the numbers and hear of both heroics and tragedies. But the actual experience remains voluntary. The previous administration brought bodies back to the U.S. in the early hours, out of sight of the general public. Life goes on as normal, but for the airport pat downs.

They think we’re soft--that if we were forced to sacrifice comforts, we might lose faith in the fight. But Americans are tougher than our politicians and enemies believe. We only turn against a war when it strays off course.

I’ll still need a reminder to call my brother on his birthday. The day carries more weight now.