Greensboring.com | Greensboro, NC

I think 9/11 means a lot of things to a lot of people. Regardless, I think we can all agree it's a day of remembrance. We will all remember the lives lost in the attacks and the sacrifice of the civil service individuals who rushed in when everyone else had to flee. As with the assassination of JFK, the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Neil Armstrong's historic steps, and other moments in recent Amercian history, 9/11 is a day where we collectively will recall exactly where we were and what we were doing when we got the first news. For many of us, we will remember the same moment when we were informed a loved one, friend, or colleague lost their life in the attacks either at the Trade Center, Pentagon, or in an ordinary commercial airline flight. Only later would it emerge that our pain was due to the actions of a fanatical religious group led by a CIA trained madman angry for his perception of our actions on a cold war era battleground and the lifestyle we project. None of that was relevant. Our nation was in shock. We were in mourning. We had a collective grieving period.

Strangely for me what stands out the most in my mind 7 years later is not so much the shock and horror of that day, but rather the way in which we immediately chose to deal with that. This national tragedy brought people together. Suddenly the differences didn't matter. For one brief shining moment, it didn't matter if you were Democrat or Republican, black or white, male or female, Jew, Christian or atheist. Because in that moment we all stood up as one brushed off the dust and proudly proclaimed "We are American".

The American flag sold out in record time across the country and stores were out of stock for weeks. We rallied behind the one thing that united us in ways that nothing else ever quite could in our nation. The flag wasn't a visual embodiment of a war cry, it wasn't our shield to cower behind, and it wasn't a political device to target people with. It was the blanket that kept us all together and its edges were wide. We were finally all one thing and one thing only. We were American.

The world watched with us as our nation bled live on television. Leaders of UK, France, Germany, Russia, Israel, Palestine, Libya, Japan, and many others all threw down the political difference to condemn the acts and offered the nation that had given so much to them throughout it's history their heartfelt condolences and assistance. Canada even opened its airports to help land hundreds of flights that had no where to go when our airspace closed. For one brief moment, even if in some small way, they were all American.

That unity and resolve those days of the attacks are what I will remember about that horrific day. It was a shining beacon of hope following a day of dread and pain. To this day video images of 9/11 still upset me as they do many of us I think. It has the power to touch a deep place in our hearts. The networks who banded together in an unprecedented move to share information and images, made yet another historic decision and collectively decided to let us morn by pulling that video from screens. We were shell shocked and seeing people die over and over could serve no purpose. Because as we watched together, mourned together, we would have to heal together. As Americans.

Today is the day to remember. Remember the thousands lost on 9/11 and what we became collectively in the moments following. We Americans don't like to feel helpless, but most of us could do nothing but watch. Those who could do something often gave their lives and continue to do so from related illness caused by exposure. In the end, we all did what we could do. Some of us volunteered, some of us donated blood, some of us prayed, and some of us wrote letters and offered financial support. Many showed up to local fire stations and police stations to bring offerings of thanks... or a simple hug. I witnessed this first hand a year later at a local fire station I was working at, a lady showed up in tears holding a huge Pyrex dish full of muffins she had made. She said she "didn't know what else to do" and collapsed in sorrow. That day we all did one thing that sometimes doesn't always come so easily. We all showed our pride each of us has in our nation.

We must remember all the victims. The ones who died on that day in September 7 years ago, and the ones who continue to suffer after giving of themselves as we all would have done. We must remember the bravery of the ordinary individual. We must remember the love and devotion of the world.

But above all we must remember... that we are Americans.

I wonder if this day will eventually become important enough historically to be considered a national holiday? Maybe make it the new Memorial Day, and move Labor Day to May 1 like the rest of the world?

SouthernFriedInfidel wrote:I wonder if this day will eventually become important enough historically to be considered a national holiday? Maybe make it the new Memorial Day, and move Labor Day to May 1 like the rest of the world?

I've wondered that too.

Sanjuro wrote:This national tragedy brought people together. Suddenly the differences didn't matter. For one brief shining moment, it didn't matter if you were Democrat or Republican, black or white, male or female, Jew, Christian or atheist. Because in that moment we all stood up as one brushed off the dust and proudly proclaimed "We are American".

Sanjuro wrote:The American flag ... wasn't a visual embodiment of a war cry, it wasn't our shield to cower behind, and it wasn't a political device to target people with. It was the blanket that kept us all together and its edges were wide. We were finally all one thing and one thing only. We were American.

Sanjuro wrote:We must remember all the victims. The ones who died on that day in September 7 years ago, and the ones who continue to suffer after giving of themselves as we all would have done. We must remember the bravery of the ordinary individual. We must remember the love and devotion of the world.

But above all we must remember... that we are Americans.

Well said. Well said. *sigh*

For me, I remember music. In the days and weeks immediately following the attacks, Enya's Only Time was used a lot. However, when I think back to 9/11/01, I think of Jane Siberry's Calling All Angels. I first heard it in the film Pay It Forward when the community holds a candlelight vigil. I wonder if I can find a link where y'all can hear it...

Serendipitous wrote: Jane Siberry's Calling All Angels. I first heard it in the film Pay It Forward when the community holds a candlelight vigil. I wonder if I can find a link where y'all can hear it...

Um, I think we've heard that song enough now thanks.

Sanjuro wrote:

Serendipitous wrote: Jane Siberry's Calling All Angels. I first heard it in the film Pay It Forward when the community holds a candlelight vigil. I wonder if I can find a link where y'all can hear it...

Um, I think we've heard that song enough now thanks.

Bleeeeeeeeeeeeeeh! Is that another song that became 9/11-centric?

Serendipitous wrote:
Bleeeeeeeeeeeeeeh! Is that another song that became 9/11-centric?

No, just a song radio stations and tv shows have used to death!

I recall the day very clearly. It was a day of being frantic because I (and everyone else where I worked) wanted details, and none could be found. The company I was working for actually shut down their internet access because everyone was trying to see what was going on. No one could find out anything until they drove home at lunch time to watch the TV coverage.

The most important memory from that day actually came a couple of days later when a friend of mine who lived in Manhattan finally got a message out to her e-mail list, describing her day -- hearing the explosion and running out to see the second plane impact only about 5 miles in the distance.

It's important to remember. And it's vital to understand that the world has never been completely safe from nuts like the ones that performed these attacks -- and never will be.

Sanjuro wrote:

Serendipitous wrote:
Bleeeeeeeeeeeeeeh! Is that another song that became 9/11-centric?

No, just a song radio stations and tv shows have used to death!

I wouldn't know that... I don't really listen to the radio and hadn't noticed it on any shows I watch, just Pay It Forward.

Back to the real subject, for me, in the next two weeks after the attacks, I had to replace the water heater at my house AND a zillion parts in my car's engine. It seemed like a lot of unexpected stuff all at once, but I couldn't complain when so many other people had lost much more that couldn't be replaced.

Serendipitous wrote:Back to the real subject, for me, in the next two weeks after the attacks, I had to replace the water heater at my house AND a zillion parts in my car's engine. It seemed like a lot of unexpected stuff all at once, but I couldn't complain when so many other people had lost much more that couldn't be replaced.

Indeed. I was in the middle of dealing with a major breakdown in my car, and trying to decide when I should trade it in on a new car -- and whether I wanted to go to the trouble of driving it to Greensboro from Mississippi. It so happened that I had a ticket to fly home that Friday. Considering the chaos that everyone expected as the air travel system got restarted that day, I decided to take the offer of a refund from Delta, and drive home to get a new car. As luck had it (for ONCE in my life) Crown Honda had one last Insight in their inventory. I bought it and drove it to Mississippi that weekend. Best single purchase decision I ever made, I think.

SouthernFriedInfidel wrote:I recall the day very clearly. It was a day of being frantic because I (and everyone else where I worked) wanted details, and none could be found. The company I was working for actually shut down their internet access because everyone was trying to see what was going on. No one could find out anything until they drove home at lunch time to watch the TV coverage.
.

I remember driving to work and hearing that a plane had crashed into the tower and thinking that it was a light aircraft. As the news unfolded, work came to a standstill, we set up a projector and big screen to the news channel (and unlocked the Internet web filter) so that staff could see what was happening.

The feeling was that this was an attack on everyone, not just America and that we wanted to do whatever we could, hence the widespread support for the invasion of Afghanistan to get the perpetrators. But that support was abused when the US decided to go after Iraq for what were obviously specious reasons and slime countries that objected.

A Person wrote:I remember driving to work and hearing that a plane had crashed into the tower and thinking that it was a light aircraft. As the news unfolded, work came to a standstill, we set up a projector and big screen to the news channel (and unlocked the Internet web filter) so that staff could see what was happening.

The feeling was that this was an attack on everyone, not just America and that we wanted to do whatever we could, hence the widespread support for the invasion of Afghanistan to get the perpetrators. But that support was abused when the US decided to go after Iraq for what were obviously specious reasons and slime countries that objected.

Well, I would prefer to keep this thread as politically light as possible for now so that we can focus on remembrance. I don't want to start a fight if we don't need to.

I'm sorry, that wasn't really my intent, although re-reading it it does seem snippy. I really wanted to point out that at the time and for the next two years, America had the support of the free world because the attack was seen as an attack on the free world.

[edited to correct typo - stupid keyboard]

A Person wrote:I'm sorry, that wasn't really my intent, although rew-reading it it does seem snippy. I really wanted to point out that at the time and for the next two years, America had the support of the free world because the attack was seen as an attack on the free world.

Can't say I disagree in the least. My comment that "for a brief moment, we were ALL American" alluded to that. I think there was the slightest of chances that the unity we cultivated could have ushered in a new age of relationships with not only the western world but beyond.

But... it didn't. And that is that.

I think everyone has scars from 9/11. It's interesting to think that future generations will be as detached from it as we are from Pearl Harbor and the Great Depression.

rumface wrote:This was the first time I had flown into LGA from the south. The few other times I flew into LGA we had to fly to the north and then turn south to land. I remember thinking how strange it was that we could fly so close to the buildings on our final approach. I don't think we were more than a mile from the buildings when we passed them. I'm a real bad judge of distance, so it could have been a 1/2 mile, or 5 miles. I just remember thinking we were awfully close to them though.

Several months after 9/11. my wife and I took a vacation to New York to visit my friend who lived there. We took a boat tour of the Hudson River/harbor area the last night that they had those columns of light things shining up from Ground Zero. It was as we were heading back toward the docks, and it was very dark at the time, that we saw a jet taking off from LGA -- and flying directly through one of the spotlights. I have to say... that creeped me out.

SouthernFriedInfidel wrote:Several months after 9/11. my wife and I took a vacation to New York to visit my friend who lived there. We took a boat tour of the Hudson River/harbor area the last night that they had those columns of light things shining up from Ground Zero. It was as we were heading back toward the docks, and it was very dark at the time, that we saw a jet taking off from LGA -- and flying directly through one of the spotlights. I have to say... that creeped me out.

Oh man those things were something else. Like probably everyone else I've been to the former WTC site multiple times. After 9/11 I always made a point to stop by while they were deconstructing everything. Quite moving before it became yet another tourist trap.

Loved this post from Sanj so much, I decided to reboot it today.

Some cool links:

View from the top of WTC 1:
http://www.360cities.net/image/world-tr ... ,5.87,70.0

View from the ground:
http://www.360cities.net/image/world-tr ... 32.21,70.0

It's a good point for more mature reflection. In the days of and following the attack, I saw much that I admired about my fellow citizens... And much that I feared would allow the jingoists to lead us to disaster. We had rotten leadership leading up to the attacks, and in the aftermath.

The sacrifices of that day have not been honored as they should have. The "first responders" are still a political hot potato that no one in Washington wants to deal with... But all will shamelessly use them in their campaigns to get elected.



We COULD have been looking at the rise of another "great generation" in the wake of these attacks. And certainly, there have been many great individuals, but the whole idea of shared purpose and sacrifice never came up. Maybe the threat wasn't big enough. Certainly, the leadership failed us. From the get-go, the primary directive THEY followed was to maximize profits rather than help bring about a great renaissance.

Yes, the world changed after 9/11. But for most people, it was no improvement.