'9/11 ripped the bandage off US culture'  No sooner had the Twin
Towers fallen than the search began for the heroes of 9/11. But
only men seemed to be eligible. The women who died were ignored;
those who survived were encouraged to get back to baking and
child-rearing. So says Susan Faludi in her new book The Terror
Dream. Decca Aitkenhead meets her and, overleaf, we print the
first of three exclusive extracts  Some months after 9/11, I
received a call from a British women's magazine editor who
wanted to commission a feature. "It's about terror sex," she
said. I didn't know what she was talking about. "You know,
terror sex! Everyone going out and having, like, crazy sex all
the time, because they don't know how long they've got before a
terrorist attack." I had never heard of this behaviour before,
and nor for that matter since, but when I mention the call to
Susan Faludi she nods - "Ah, yes, terror sex" - and laughs. "But
at least," she points out, "terror sex was about fun. It didn't
require going out and b