'No escape from the hard things of the world': learning the lessons of empire.

This paper explores the events of September 11, 2001 through the learning optic. What lessons did an infuriated segment of the Arab world try to teach the West? Did the USA learn anything profound from these events? How should critical adult educators think about the connection between these events, mounting global anarchy and the US-UK invasion of Iraq in March 2003? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]