We cannot and will not forget 9/11. 16 years ago the US experienced the worse terrorist attach on our soil in history. Today we face threats from both inside and outside our borders. We should never let this tragedy be forgotten. We should take it as a lesson. The world needs to stop these battles. We can’t go on hating because of color, religion, where you live or whether you are rich or poor.
It’s been 15 years since the planes hit the World Trade Center, 15 years since the plane slammed into the Pentagon, 15 years since flight 93 crashed into a field in Pennsylvania.
Are we any safer today that on 9/11? That is a question for another day. Today we remember.
I still remember the images as if I am just seeing them. I remember the feelings. It was surreal. It can’t be happening. This is America, my home. Wars don’t come to our shores and yet there was the black smoke billowing from the tower, there was the plane, seeming to be in slow motion, crashing into the 2nd tower. For me it is like yesterday. I will never forget.
So it came as another shock to realize that there are children that have no memory of the events that day. Children that were born after that tragic event. Of course when I stop and think about it logically, there will be young people that read about 911 as history like I studied Pearl Harbor.
And as we remember Pearl Harbor we must remember 911. Never Forget!
NEVER FORGET!
My plan Monday was to start at the starting line in Hopkinton. I envisioned getting pictures of the crowd as the race started. Then I intended to drive to a few other places including Heartbreak Hill to collect more photos that show how runners were doing as the race progressed.
I intended then to drive to Braintree and take the “T” into Boston so I could arrive for pictures of runners crossing the finish line. I planned to arrive between 2:30- 3:30 because the elite runners would have come in by then and I thought I’d have a better chance of getting a place where I could have an unobstructed view.
Once all the pictures were in camera I would edit it down to the best as a Wordless Wednesday post.
But fate had a different plan. First I overslept so I never got on the road until almost 11am. At that point I seriously wondered if I wanted to put up with the crowds. I decided to go to the zoo and spend a quiet day with the animals. What I forgot to consider was that this is school vacation week so the zoo was packed. By now it was after lunch so I went back to the original game plan and turned the car toward Braintree.
I had just got on the highway when my phone went off. There was a message from the Outsource Service that is working on my resume. I pulled off at the first exit to see what they wanted.
They were returning my original resume with a number of suggested revisions. I thought about the race and I thought about my need for the resume and the resume won. I turned around and went home and that fateful decision may have literally been a life saver.
I finished the revisions about 4pm and turned on the TV. It was a shock! I couldn’t believe what I was hearing and seeing. It was deja vu. I had the same feeling of disbelief when I watched the Twin Towers.
As I write this no one has come forward to claim responsibility for this atrocity. But to me it doesn’t matter if it’s a foreign terrorist group, a home-grown protest, or a deranged individual…it’s all terrorism. ” The dictionary defines terrorism as : the use of violence and threats to intimidate or coerce.
In my mind terrorism is preying on the innocent to induce a state of fear. Certainly the events Monday at the marathon fit that description.
One of the best comments I’ve read was written by Bruce Schneier, an American cryptographer, computer security specialist, and writer. Mr. Schneier wrote an editorial piece on the bombing. Out of that article I chose to share this paragraph: Don’t glorify the terrorists and their actions by calling this part of a “war on terror.” Wars involve two legitimate sides. There’s only one legitimate side here; those on the other are criminals. They should be found, arrested, and punished. But we need to be vigilant not to weaken the very freedoms and liberties that make this country great, meanwhile, just because we’re scared.
In the aftermath of this tragedy there will be talk of making stricter rules and maybe laws. We will again be subjected to searches on the “T” and see bomb sniffing dogs and swat teams everywhere. Some may welcome it as there is a false sense of safely in this show of force but we must not forget that we cannot trade away our freedoms or the terrorists win.
Mr. Rogers said “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping’.”
We saw that in the frightening moments immediately following the blasts. People ran toward the explosion looking to help. Runners having just finished a grueling 26 miles continued to hospitals to give blood to help the wounded.
So stand tall. Don’t give up our rights in fear and look for the helpers. They will be there.
My thoughts, sympathies and prayers are with those who were injured or lost their lives in Monday’s horrific events. My the Good Lord give strength to the families and friends that are left to deal with the tragic aftermath. I pray that those responsible are identified and brought to justice. Amen