How should we be commemorating 9/11? There seems to be some dilution of the poignant memories of what happened to this nation on September 11, 2001. I watched the morning news today, and on most networks there was hardly any footage of the terrible things perpetrated on our country eight years ago.
OUr President in Washington DC, and the Mayor of New York at the site of the World Trade Center both mentioned something similar - that this day should be spent in community service in honor of those who gave their lives that day. Kathleen Sebelius, the Secretary of Health wrote a letter to her employees expressing a similar theme.
But should community service be foremost on the anniversary of the deadliest day in our nation's history on American soil at the hands of a foreign enemy? (Yes, I realize that there were days of greater losses during the Civil War).
The attacks on the Trade Center, the Pentagon, and Shanksville, PA were acts of war by a foreign enemy, not crimes to be dealt with by a judiciary. September 11 is a day in which we should remember what happened on that terrible morning, remember and honor the men and women who lost their lives, and those heroes who put themselves at risk, sacrificing in many cases their own lives and health.
We also should honor the brave men and women of our military - as we vow not to allow such an attack on our country to occur ever again.
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Brian - I agree, I don't think a day of service is quite fitting. Service is good, but it really should be a day of memorial and reflection.
Wendy, that's my point - community service is great, but it's not why September 11 is a sacred day for Americans.
Brian, that is why I will not watch the news on any channel but Fox News.
They started very early in the morning interviewing family members who had lost loved ones, people who were on the scene right after the crashed, Bush advisers (Andy Card and Ari Fleisher who explained why Bush did not jump up and get hysterical in front of the children and why he did not fly back to WA DC which he has been criticized for; survivors, one woman who was pulled out of the rubble after 27 hours. They had reporters on the scene at the Pentagon, Shanksville, and Ground Zero. Relatives announced the names of every person who was killed, and they were honored in a very nice way. I believe everyone on that TV Station thinks Sept 11 is a sacred day for Americans.
One of my liberal acquaintances asked me just last night if I thought Fox News was fair and balanced, and I said no, they talk about what I want to hear, conservatism. But they do not leave out any news, its just not slanted or ignored as the whole Acorn fiasco of the last few days has been ignored by the mainstream press. Sorry to be so wordy.
This day means a lot of different things to different people. But as an American you are so right and I think we should do some community service and I hope our military is blowing up a few in Afganastan and Iraq to to make that point.
How about a community service project that involves gathering signatures for a recall of the president.
Brian, I think you asked/stated the point perfectly. I think a community service day is great for other important days, but not on Sept. 11th. It would be like FDR asking to plant trees to commemorate the attack on Pearl Harbor.......it just doesnt' feel right. You all have great points. And Hugh, I saw a sign that said "to bad we don't have a presidential Lemon Law" the other day, toooo funny!
Patrick Johnson, Windermere RE
Bellingham Wa.
Brian - We as a nation have aloud the press to stop showing footage of 9/11 for fear of offending someone.
Meanwhile, we have lost our soul because we keep silent when we should speak up.
People say that there are to things we should not speak about in public, religion and politics.
Well, if we don't speak of our religious convictions, we will loose our souls and the souls of the hearers.
If we keep silent about politics, someone else will speak but perhaps it will be too late.
Nazi Germany, Communist Russia all started when good people stood silently.
Brian
I am making myself watch the videos again today . It is a necessary part in the rememberance process for me personally. There was so much and it was overwhelming.
The day it actually occured we watched it in our conference room at the office. We were all just blank faced.
I don't understand the day of service thing myself .Ii want to mourn and be silent.
Sandra, Fox News is fair and balanced in the sense that both sides are regularly aired. The other news outlets unfortunately often either show only the liberal outlook, or ignore certain stories altogether that might prove embarassing to their side.
Charles, thanks for your comments.
Hugh, you could get a lot of signatures on that petition if you circulated it at the Tea Party Express or the 9/12 demonstration in Washington DC...
Patrick, maybe the lemon laws should be expanded to include more categories...
Nicholas, as Edmund Burke said: It is necessary only for good men to do nothing for evil to triumph. There are certain things that offend our core values, and we must have the bravery to speak out against them. After only eight years, the meaning of 9/11 is already being forgotten, or directed into more politically correct directions.
Trey, the videos are difficult to watch because of the horror perpetrated on our country. That is the very reason they should never be forgotten.
Brian, FOX news carried both the current events of the day and specials where they re-ran most of the important coverage from that day. Interviews with survivors who had incredible stories of little known heroism. Interviews with Norad who received mixed messages that day.
The entire program was re-run at 11pm.
The coverage was not sensational. It was reverent and appropriate. It made you cry all over again. We need to be brought back to reality least we are lulled into complacency again.
Bonnie, I'm proud of the way Fox News covered the day. I totally concur with your feeling that those who are complacent or ignorant about history are doomed to repeat it.
We not only have to guard against foreign enemies; we must guard against those enemies within who would seek to regulate free speech on the internet, talk radio, and town meetings!
It is a CRIME that NYC has not been able to re-build the WTC in 8 years * the Pentagon was rebuilt in 1 YEAR * it's not the $$$ * it is the POWER STRUGGLE between the various entities and agencies not to mention the poorly specified design contest
Wallace, especially considering the billions of dollars spent in rebuilding Iraq and Afghanistan, you would think we could have figured out a way to rebuild the WTC in less than eight years. My hope had been that the WTC would be rebuilt quickly to send a message to Al Qaida that the American way of life was too strong to be vanquished.
I vote for a National holiday, perhaps to honor all those who have died at the hands of both domestic and foreign terrorists.
Jim, I agree that the day should be dedicated to honoring all those who have died at the hands of domestic and foreign terrorists. As far as making it another national holiday, I'm afraid it would just end up being one more excuse for sales at the stores...
Wow! I didn't see any dilution at all out here. I watched many, many, many hours on MSNBC and The History Channel. What I really liked was that MSNBC had live interviews with many of the survivors, especially those who are now suffering from various diseases caused by inhaling all that dust, much of it composed of various substances known to cause cancer, like asbestos. The History Channel had the best historical footage of events that happened that day and in the following 30 days during rescue and cleanup but no live interviews with anyone other than "live" within those 30 days.
I don't know what the other channels might have shown because I was tuned in to MSNBC and The History Channel. When it comes to history, they are my two channels of choice.
Russell, thanks for your input. I'm glad that MSNBC and the History Channel showed good historical footage. However, those channels do not have the highest viewer numbers, and judging by some of the comments to this post, other members had the feeling that there was a dilution or misdirection of the mainstream coverage.
I may have a unique perspective as I have a client who escaped from Tower 2, walking all the way to New Jersey that day, and my assistant is an American Airlines flight attendant. We watched the American Airlines plane hit Tower 2 as we stood glued to the tv in a new listing on tour that day. Someone suggested that she should change her voicemail immediately to reflect the date and that she was, in fact, at home.
For many this is a very personal and emotional day and replaying the footage all day long on every single channel is deeply painful. They prefer to spend quiet time with loved ones or those similarly affected. I think people should spend the day doing whatever they feel is appropriate for themselves and their loved ones.
Sarah, I agree that 9/11 is a personal and emotional day for many. That is the very reason I am bothered by those who try to redirect the meaning toward politically correct but trivial causes other than remembering.