The 9/11 anniversary: Not 'just about us'?

The White House has issued guidelines to federal employees urging them to mark the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks not only by honoring the dead, reports The New York Times, but also by pointing out that Islamist terrorists have struck other countries, too. One official said the administration wants to signal to the world that "we realize that 9/11 — the attacks themselves and violent extremism writ large — is not 'just about us.'" Is that the message we should be sending?

No. 9/11 is about us: "The hubris is just way over the top here," says Jammie Wearing Fool at Human Events. Obama is trying to divert attention from the heroes of 9/11 — the first responders, for example — and the victims. These "astonishingly short-sighted and self-centered" guidelines make the anniversary about Obama and his vision for the world. "Sickening."

"The official White House guidelines to commemorate 9/11"

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This should not be controversial: Right-wing nuts are fuming over this, says Jim Newell at Gawker. But let's get real. This is just a smart, coordinated way to present our best face to the world. Sept. 11 was a tragic event that changed history — "no one wants important government people going out and screwing something up or saying something stupid." There's no sinister White House plot here.

"White House extremely worried about people saying dumb stuff on 9/11"

And this is no different than George W. Bush's position: It's easy to understand why some object to shifting the focus from the victims, says Ed Morrissey at Hot Air. But it's also worth pointing out that President Obama is just echoing sentiments George W. Bush expressed from the start. Bush never failed to remind America that people from many nations died in the attacks, and that the events of 9/11 weren't only an attack on the U.S., but the entire free world.

"WH guidelines on 9/11 anniversary emphasize not 'just about us'"