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City Journal: Public distrust of counterterrorism tech threatens US national security
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This City Journal article, published on the 25th anniversary of 9/11, argues that public distrust of technology is undermining U.S. counterterrorism gains. Author Danny Crichton contends that advances such as ubiquitous smartphones, data-sharing platforms, and AI for threat monitoring are under threat from domestic opposition, not foreign adversaries. He advocates for greater transparency from government and tech companies about how these tools work and the safeguards governing them. The article also includes a personal reflection by Jonathan Clarke on the loss of certainty after 9/11 and his evolving views on the Iraq War. Additionally, it covers a lawsuit against New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's rent freeze, arguing it bypasses the independent Rent Guidelines Board, and reports on the Socialism 2026 conference in Chicago, highlighting themes of abolition and 'luxury beliefs' among attendees.
Source report
Twenty-five years after 9/11, it’s undermining national security.
Publication date: September 11, 2026
Topics: Politics and Law, The Social Order, Public Safety
Good morning,
Today, we’re looking at a backlash against counterterrorism tools, the loss of certainty after 9/11, a lawsuit against New York City’s rent freeze, and the Socialism 2026 conference.
Write to us at editors@city-journal.org with questions or comments.
Now, on to the news…
Distrust in Tech Is Undermining National Security
Photo credit: Anadolu / Contributor / Anadolu via Getty Images
Technological advances have dramatically improved the U.S. counterterrorism landscape since al-Qaeda’s 9/11 attack a quarter of a century ago. Ubiquitous smartphones provide law enforcement with troves of data for tracking suspects. New software platforms help agencies coordinate and share information. Advanced AI helps monitor emerging threats in real time.
“Yet these critical counterterrorism advances are under increasing threat—not from foreign adversaries with better training or greater resources, but from opposition at home,” writes Danny Crichton. Public distrust of tech is threatening many of the security gains the U.S. has made since 2001.
“The best response is greater openness about how these technologies work and the safeguards that govern them,” writes Crichton. That means we need “greater transparency and a clearer account of what government and technology companies are doing—and why these tools matter.”
Read more.
September 11 and the Loss of Certainty
After the September 11 terror attacks, Jonathan Clarke fully supported U.S. efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Looking back now, though, he isn’t entirely sure what he wanted out of the invasion of Iraq—perhaps just a sense of order restored.
“I thought we would show the world that American power could be used for good,” he writes. “But a much stronger unconscious motive had been in control all along. Over time, I began to understand the limits of what certainty could do for me. And I saw that my certainty was joined to darker motives.”
Read more here.
Why We’re Taking Mamdani’s Rent Freeze to Court
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s rent freeze may be illegal. That’s why real-estate developer Gandolfo DiFiore is joining the plaintiffs represented by former Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro in a lawsuit challenging the rent freeze, and why the Manhattan Institute is providing financial support and recently filed an amicus curiae brief in the case.
“We did so because we believe Mamdani’s repeated promise to freeze rents prejudged a decision that by law belongs to an independent Rent Guidelines Board (RGB),” John Ketcham and DiFiore write. The law requires the board to consider vacancy rates, costs, and more before deciding on rent-stabilized increases. “Despite evidence showing mounting operating costs,” Ketcham and DiFiore observe, “the RGB (now with a Mamdani-appointed majority) voted to fulfill the mayor’s campaign promise for one-year and—for the first time—two-year leases.”
Read more about the lawsuit.
Covid Masks, a “Gay Communism” Hat, and Hasan Piker: Inside the Socialism 2026 Conference
Haymarket Books hosted its Socialism 2026 conference in Chicago over Labor Day weekend. City Journal investigative analyst Stu Smith closely monitored the livestreams and posted viral clips on X, while City Journal associate editor Aidan Grogan reported on the conference from inside.
The common theme they observed in panels and conference spaces was “abolition.” The socialists revealed their plans to abolish not only capitalism and private property but also police, prisons, and even the family. Overall, the event was a “grand spectacle of ‘luxury beliefs’”—ideas that confer status on elites while doing great damage to people from disadvantaged communities.
“Abolitionist ideas may be trendy among the majority-white, urban professionals who attended Socialism 2026, but the abstract theories of human nature and society presented by the academic Left are not well-received in minority and working-class neighborhoods,” Grogan and Smith concluded.
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