The Tenth Anniversary of 911

For those of us old enough to be reading this article, we all remember where we were that day the 11th of September, 2001. It wasn't the first time terrorists had attacked on U.S. soil, but it was by far the biggest attack on American soil by terrorists. If you hadn't been paying much attention to the spread of terrorism or the world's interactions with the Middle East - you were about to become very familiar with all of it very quickly. Unfortunately, through the media...

These are the basic facts of what happened as reported at http://septterror.tripod.com/the911basics.html (I'll include the link at the end, more detailed information is available there)

9-11: THE BASICS

Only a brief summary of 9-11 is presented here, as massive volumes of more in-depth material are available on the World Wide Web and in video and paper formats.

THE DAY

Tuesday, 11 September 2001 was a cloudless, bright late summer day in the eastern United States. It was a week after Labor Day, the traditional end of the summer travel and vacation season, and the beginning of American football season, school and thoughts of autumn.

The day was as routine as any in New York, New York and Washington, D.C. Before ordinary passenger jets became fiery menaces, people in the World Trade Center and Pentagon were working at personal computers, typing letters or reading e-mail, speaking on the phone or processing paperwork. None of the civilians seemed to know what was to happen.

At 5:30 a.m., several men flew on a commuter jet from Portland, Maine, to Logan International Airport in Boston. They boarded two Boeing 767s, American Airlines (AAL) Flight 11, and United Airlines (UAL) Flight 175. Both jets were supposed to arrive in Los Angeles.

According to investigations and eyewitnesses accounts later intercepted from the planes while in flight, these men carried small knives and box cutters, tools more often used for opening packages.

Other men, similarly armed, traveled to Newark International Airport to take UAL Flight 93 at 8:42 a.m. to San Francisco, and Washington Dulles Airport to board AAL Flight 77 for 8:20 a.m. departure to Los Angeles.

All of the jets were scheduled for transcontinental flights and carried an average of 20,000 gallons of aviation fuel. This was probably one of the major reasons they were selected, as the amount of fuel, plus impact into a building, added up to a lethal bomb.

TIMELINE

8:42 a.m. -- AAL Flight 11 hits 1 World Trade Center, also known as the north tower and distinctive for its huge television antenna.

9:03 a.m. a.m. -- UAL Flight 175 strikes 2 World World Trade Center (south tower).

9:25 a.m. -- The Federal Aviation Administration orders a shutdown of all airports nationwide.

9:40 a.m. --AAL Flight 77 crashes into the west face of the Pentagon.

10:05 a.m. -- WTC 2 collapses

10:10 a.m. -- Part of the Pentagon collapses

10:29 a.m. -- WTC 1 collapses

10:40 a.m. -- UAL Flight 93 crashes near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Its crash is attributed in part to several passengers' decision to attack the hijackers.

5:20 p.m. -- WTC 7 collapses. It apparently was weakened by falling debris from the Twin Towers and the conbustion of large tanks of diesel fuel stored on the premises.

8:30 p.m. -- President George W. Bush addresses citizens in a televised Oval Office speech.

Death Toll

Just over 3,000 were killed in the three attacks. Here is a breakdown.

World Trade Center: Total, 2,830 people. Most of these victims were civilians on the WTC premises. This figure also includes 343 New York firefighters; 23 New York city police officers; 37 Port Authority police officers; 92 persons on AAL Flight 11; and 65 people on UAL Flight 175.
Pentagon: 125 in building; 64 on AAL Flight 77
Shanksville, Pennsylvania: 44 on UAL Flight 93

I'm writing this article because I'm angry inside. I know people don't forget the anniversary, after all, its become a National Day of Rememberance - Patriot Day.

I'm just sick in my heart of hearing all of the noise on the street (I don't really care who it is talking but they are fellow Americans) about how this shouldn't have caused a war, we shouldn't have gone into Iraq, how so many have died over this, and this list goes on and on and on. I know people, all of us, are entitled to opinions and freedom of speech - I'm tired of all of the Bush jokes, I'm tired of the jokes about the money spent on Homeland Security, I'm tired of the criticism about the mistakes we made in reacting to this - and all by people who aren't in government and don't do a damn thing but bitch and vote. Not to minimize voting, of course it's a great way to effect change and elect leaders who we believe will carry our issues to the front lines, but there are other ways to bring about change and get your hands dirty than just complaining or throwing up a sign and screaming louder.What I'm really saying is...why must everything be so divided, why all the blaming, why all the constant bashing and criticism. And when one hears it from another - it just gets amplified and shouted out louder from the rooftops. I just want to SEE people treat each other better; democrats, republicans, liberals, whatever groups everyone thinks they fit into or none at all. RESPECT each other's differences and work together for the good of all.

Now I think this is the first column about anything political or governmental I've ever written - but I am very patriotic. And I'm aware. I know that the rest of the world has mixed opinions about us, some laugh at the US and think we're idiots whether they look at our government or how divided we are internally. Some say we can't even stand together on the inside, we fight against ourselves, so how can we expect to be taken seriously? Some countries have great respect for our nation and see that we are strong. Lately, I don't know what they think of us.

We can't seem to agree on anything. Budget, of course not. Homeland Security...no one can agree because there are two sides of the coin. Medical/Jobs/Social Security, huge mess. And who's to blame? Even bigger debate. But a debate is healthy; the name calling, bullying, blame game, passing the buck, shouting, playground antics, all of the drama distracting everyone - isn't going to solve the problem. How many have written actual plans or taken the time to give ideas to your congressmen or senators about these problems? Good for you if you have!

As for the people who are the workhorses in our country - the military, law enforcement, elected leaders, medical personnel, firefighters, all our community organizations who sacrifice themselves for our well being, the homeland security, government civilian personnel, contractors, everyone based here or overseas - how about cutting them a break too.

I get sick to my stomach when I hear of some troops coming back from Iraq/Afghanistan in a coffin, and on the day of his/her funeral and their mourning family and friends are greeted at the cemetery by picketers screaming and interrupting the service. This is a funeral, which is this family's last day to mourn the untimely loss of their son or daughter. Show some respect people. It is not this soldier's fault that the government is doing something you don't like - and you are taking it out on the most vulnerable of your fellow Americans at their weakest point. I am so ashamed of my fellow citizens who don't know the proper way to take their arguements to the right people.

The whole gist of our Nation's reaction to 911 is that hindsight is 20/20. Things could have been done differently, yes. But we, as a nation, never dealt with anything of this magnitude before. And we are relatively still a young (and stupid sometimes) country. We could have made better decisions on a lot of things. But they could have been worse too. I think we did pretty good. Whose idea was it to get the county mobilized to give blood as soon as it happened? We have made some good decisions too. And we have had some really strong changes in the area of national and homeland security. I am so tired of people whining about tighter security at airports and ports in general being a nuisance on their pleasure travel. Look at these videos and think if a little tighter security or stronger intelligence would have been a nuisance if any of these people had known beforehand on September 11th 2001.

I wish we could trust the people we put in positions of government oversight. I wish people would let other people do their jobs. And I wish the world wasn't so filled with power mongers, and religious fanatics, and abusers. I wish, I wish, I wish...I'm sensible enough to know that wishing doesn't do anything - but I act on what I can and don't sit around and just complain and blame when I can't.

But this whole 911 Anniversary reminds me that on that day, we did all stand together as a nation. For one day. On that one day we identified ourselves as Americans and didn't break ourselves down into ethnic origins, religious groups and other cliques. We were just Americans.

We aren't going to be happy with every decision our government makes - hell, lately I'm not happy with most of them - but I'm still an American, and stand behind the laws of this country and the Constitution and raise my flag. I'm proud of our military, and thank them for their sacrifice for our freedom. They give their lives in the defense of this nation - and I have to listen to the criticism of all the leaders and troops and I'm ashamed. This comes from people who have never served and wouldn't know what its like to give your life for a cause let alone another human being.

I understand that we all have the freedom of speech - that's why I can write this column. In fact that is precisely why I decided to write this column. I have sat quietly and listened to the complaining and moaning about things that don't mean much when push comes to shove. I'm talking about politicians and government as well as people like you and me. I just don't understand why we don't just take care of the important issues, clean up our act, cut spending, take a little responsibility for ourselves and those we love.

Have pride in ourselves and our nation. It isn't hard. I remain proud to be part of our United, not divided, United States of America. I know there are a lot of you who stand with me, and I know there are many who think I sound silly. You know what, its your opinion - you have a right to it. Brightest Blessings and thanks for giving me my fifteen minutes.

The 911 Memorial at Ground Zero in New York City will be dedicated on the tenth anniversary on 11 September 2011, and will officially open to the public on September 12th. The Museum is scheduled to open in September of 2012.

The memorial will be located in the footprint of both of the original twin towers. It occupies approximately 8 acres and features two waterfalls with reflecting pools. The link below will take you to the site of NYCInsider.com page about the Memorial and Museum.

I have exercised my freedom of speech in this hub...please feel free to exercise yours. All respectful comments will be approved whether they agree with mine or not...that I promise you. I also will tell you right up front that I'm not one to be baited into political or governmental discussions...I just felt passionate about this one. This is my opinion, I have no need or want to debate anything...you are entitled to your own opinion. I do my part, and I know the work I do matters, that's good enough for me. I wish you all the brightest of blessings and I thank all of you who serve military, civilian, law enforcement, and in every capacity...