9/11 Attacks - 6th Anniversary OFFICIAL THREAD

[Fledermaus]

 

[Zero_Vault]

Wow.

 

[Fledermaus]

That's what he said.

 

[Zero_Vault]

Wow.

*shakes head*

 

[Jerry!]

It would work without the dog.

 

[Kelly]

I think political discussion of this can be made somewhere else.....this should stay with remembering those who lost their lives that day....and maybe in some of our cases, how it changed our lives.

My school was coming back in from a "bomb threat" of all things....I remember escorting my students back into my classroom and one of our coaches came up to me and said "you need to turn your television on, something has happened in New York"....I immediately went in and turned the tv on and saw the replay of the first plane going into the first tower. As we watched a live look at the burning building the second plane hit. Only one of my students realized that it was a different plane. At that point, I looked at my students, and I'll never forget those 30 faces....they were terrified.

That night I watched all night long fliping channels....I couldn't turn the TV off. I remember the face of the TV reporter on CNN as she interviewed people on the streets of NYC, they would show her the pictures of their loved ones and ask people "if they've seen my husband, dad, wife, brother, sister..." please call........the reporter would then ask where they worked, what floor.....and they would say...."Canter Fitzerald" (my spelling may be wrong), the reporters face went white, every time.....because she knew that was the floor that one of the planes hit head on and no one survived except the manager of the NYC offices......it was the first day of Kindergarten for his kiddo....he took him to his first day, and was going in late.


I'll never forget those people.....ever.

 

[SuperFerret]

In and out, that's all I'm doing here. I'm posting this, and then I'm not posting in this thread again. I've just got to get something that's been bothering me out there.

I hate that this day is called "Patriot Day" by some, as it should not be some flag-waving, "hoorah for the red, white and blue" day. It is a day of mourning and rememberance. I mean no disrespect to anybody at all when I say that it is (at the very least) an over-generalization to call those who died of September 11th, 2001 'patriots' or even 'heroes'. Yes, the police, EMTs, firefighters, the passengers of the flight that went down in Pennsylvania, even many of the office workers and bystanders nearby could be called heroes, but it's impossible to truthfully say that they were all heroic in their final moments. Personally, I doubt I could be, were I in that situation. I guess that makes those who were heroes all the more heroic. But that's not my point.

It's likely that very few, if any, of the people who died that day boarded a plane, or commuted to work thinking about the grandness of the U.S. of A. Their last moments weren't filled with visions of Old Glory and Uncle Sam. They likely were thinking of what they'd do that evening, or that weekend, or what was for dinner, or a million other mundane, day-to-day things. They likely died thinking of their loved ones, and the lives they've led. Those who died helping others didn't die for their country, they died to save the life of another human being.

Today is not about freedom, nobody was trying to enslave or oppress us. Today is not about America, or good vs. evil, or George Bush, or Rudy Guiliani, or the war on terror, or Islam, or whatever other bull that's been forced down our throats on this day for six years.

Today is about the people. The people who went to work, boarded a plane, did what they do on a normal day, expecting to see the next, as we all do. They didn't. They died. Yes, they died in the worst attack on the U.S. since Pearl Harbor, but that really doesn't matter. Whether or not you agree that they've been avenged, or that this war we're in is just, you're just plain missing the point if you think today is about that.

At least a few times a month, I'll make the trek into Manhattan from where I live in Brooklyn. When I do, I take the D train, which passes over the Manhattan bridge. It gives a lovely view of the Brooklyn Bridge, but behind it, anyone who's lived in New York for longer than 10 years knows that the skyline is broken. That something is missing. Seeing sky where sky shouldn't be brings back that day for me. I cried for a month, and I lost nobody. I knew no one at that time that did. I can't imagine what it's like for anyone who is closer to that than I am.

I think, I hope, I made my point. Good day.

 

[knowsbleed]

Thanks for that SuperFerret. Last time I was in Manhattan, before they started rebuilding ground zero...it was devastating to me to see that empty spot as well.

I do agree its about the people...but I also vividly remember how people started working together after the event to try and help as much as they could. I know I did. We were part of crews to inspect and send FEMA to the site; making sure their gear was ready and that they got there as fast as they could that very same day. We were working at breakneck speed all night long. We must have worked non-stop at least 48 hours...and then after that we were on 12-15 hour shifts just sending more supplies, personnel and equipment out.

My point is is that along with the disaster and dread, there was a sense of people working together to try and do what they could...no matter how small the contribution.

Those days after 9/11 are permanently etched into my mind and I don't ever think that I'll take those people who died, the families that survived them and the people that worked their asses off to remedy the situation for granted.

 

[danoyse]

I'm not downtown that much these days, I really don't like to be near Ground Zero when all the tourists are swarming around it...I still remember watching someone pose their smiling kids in front of it once while they took a picture.

But a few months ago I drove one of my friends to her office to pick up some Christmas presents she'd stashed away for her kids. She works about 2 blocks from the WTC site. It was late, so everything on the street was closed, and I was waiting in the car while she went upstairs. I just see the lights from Ground Zero from where my car was parked, and since the area was pretty much deserted, it felt like I was alone with the place, which was an odd feeling. I wasn't afraid to be there or anything...it just felt sad.

It was weird that this was the first anniversary that it rained. People were commenting at work today that it's usually beautiful out on 9/11, just like it had been that day. Today it was hot, rainy and muggy.

It reminded me more of when I went back to work a few days after 9/11 and it was pouring out. I remember walking through Times Square and it was practically empty, which was eerie.

 

[CFE]

If you have the MSNBC channel, they're re-broadcasting their 9/11/2001 broadcast in a special called "9/11 as it happened".

CFE

 

[Lantern Venom]

I think political discussion of this can be made somewhere else.....this should stay with remembering those who lost their lives that day

I'll never forget those people.....ever.

I know some people feel that a discussion of 9/11 cannot be done sans politics. However, I think that remembering that day shouldn't be a usual spitting match between Republicans and Democrats about who's to blame and what should be done next. On that infamous day back in 2001, the people of NYC had their lives stripped down to the basic human will to survive. I think that goes deeper than politics. 9/11 was a nightmarish reminder of the fragility of human existence and the capacity humanity has for violence. Regardless of our believes, both religious and political, we should all be able to share in the grief caused by the thousands of lives lost and millions that were altered on that day.

 

[Hunter Rider]

Ive deleted that 4 times, get the message.

 

[Speedball]

It would work without the dog.

The original had a dog...

 

[The Kid]

shucks i couldn't finish before we hit 9/12 but here it is anyway.

A small humble tribute of mine to the towers using familiar footage. enjoy

[YT]v/yH65K66CSig[/YT]

 

[SuperMonkey]

I'm not downtown that much these days, I really don't like to be near Ground Zero when all the tourists are swarming around it...I still remember watching someone pose their smiling kids in front of it once while they took a picture.

Yeah, I live about 20 blocks north of it and the tourists are just f***ing whacked. I actually saw someone ask one of the construction workers on the memorial to take a picture with her. They act like it's just another landmark, like the Washington Monument or the Seattle thingy.

 

[Lantern Venom]

Yeah, I live about 20 blocks north of it and the tourists are just f***ing whacked. I actually saw someone ask one of the construction workers on the memorial to take a picture with her. They act like it's just another landmark, like the Washington Monument or the Seattle thingy.

Sheesh! I can't believe people are acting that way. I went there in the summer of '02 and the experience was still fresh is many people's minds. There were still grieving family members and friends of victims there putting up and maintaining memorials. I don't think I saw one smile while I was there. Personally, I walked away and remarked to my wife that after seeing all the destruction and pain, I finally knew what evil looked it.

 

[CFE]

shucks i couldn't finish before we hit 9/12 but here it is anyway.

A small humble tribute of mine to the towers using familiar footage. enjoy

Very moving work, Wesyeed. Good Job

CFE

 

[danoyse]

Sheesh! I can't believe people are acting that way. I went there in the summer of '02 and the experience was still fresh is many people's minds. There were still grieving family members and friends of victims there putting up and maintaining memorials. I don't think I saw one smile while I was there. Personally, I walked away and remarked to my wife that after seeing all the destruction and pain, I finally knew what evil looked it.

And I think most of the tourists are just as respectful. It's the rest of them who seem to think we're all living in a bad country music song and this is what they're doing to "help."

I actually saw someone else take a picture of his two little girls in front of a firefighter's funeral procession.

 

[Fried Gold]

Where did my hilarious Super Mario Bros. joke go?

 

[LexCorp]

OK so we just had a firealarm at work....

Which brings up the whole 9/11 thing.

My Boss thinks that it is wrong not to evacuate in an emrgency favouring work first before your life. I agree.

Even if it was a drill.

 

[zanos]

If you have the MSNBC channel, they're re-broadcasting their 9/11/2001 broadcast in a special called "9/11 as it happened".

CFE

I saw it. It wasn't very good.

 

[USMC]

OP is definitely what comes to my mind when I think of 9/11...



WTF?