Finished the Netflix series on 9/11 and the subsequent war on terror. Parts are a difficult watch, that abruptly brought back more of the emotion from that week than I was prepared for. A lot of footage I hadn't ever seen, and interviews with people who are alive mostly by miracle. As the timeline progresses to the Afghan war, the interviews turn to military members, and the raw emotion in these is heartbreaking to see. Former Bush staffers are interviewed, former high ranking military and intelligence as well. There is a timeline jump back to the Reagan era regarding the Taliban and how the CIA backed them that filled in some history for me. The CIA agent in charge on the ground in Afghanistan at the time is interviewed and is quite frank about how he was told, "Here's a billion dollars to help these guys with whatever they need, and if you need more let me know." Cheney comes off as the monster he is, and the actions to just toss out the fourth amendment with the Patriot Act is covered as well, including a particularly horrifying recollection of Bush staffers barging into the ICU room of John Ashcroft who was 50/50 on survival from pancreatitis and complications and barely conscious at the time to sign off on the legality of the Patriot Act.