Although there’s a lot of news of note around the world today, I decided to compile an assortment of essays and op-eds about 11 September. I valiantly tried for a more international perspective, but that proved to be quite an interesting challenge. Along the way, though, I learned about ongoing news events in random, obscure places, and that was rather interesting in and of itself. It’s very easy to forget, sometimes, that the world is a big place and there’s a lot of stuff going on, from toppling governments to education reforms. It’s amazing how much we don’t hear about in our own news. By the way, here’s a compendium of English language newspapers from around the world, if you feel like exploring international news yourself.

Joyce Wadler of the New York Times writes a compelling brief personal essay about 11 September. If you like Tim O’Brien, you’ll probably like this essay; if you don’t, you’ll probably think it’s offensive. Read it anyway, because it’s good.

The Guardian solicits comments from readers, asking where people were six years ago, and what they were thinking. The comments thread gets a bit rowdy; if you’ve got thin skin, consider yourself warned.

A somber editorial in the Herald Sun about lessons learned (and unlearned).

We lost more than lives six years ago…we also lost many key Constitutional values.

Danger Room takes a look at the flailing Department of Homeland Security, founded, after all, as a result of events six years ago.

Agatha reminds her readers about the international toll on 11 September.