9/11

[Burly Brute]

I am taking a politics course this semester, and we have been definitely pouring over the events that took place.

I know this may be somewhat "controversial" for this forum, but my hopes is that in the same way we have (as a community) dealt with the wake of other tragedies in the last year or so, perhaps as a community we can take the time to reflect and see where in our own lives are areas we need to change to be better citizens, or to be more kind and loving to our fellow humankind, etc.

I was 14 years of age at the time, but I remember it vividly. And I think as a whole, the globe has taken what was meant for evil and stood in opposition, becoming better in spite of it.

**Disclaimer
I am not seeking any religious/political jargon, or feelings about conspiracy, blah, blah, blah. I mostly want to see how your guys' initial feelings may have been, and how you have changed (hopefully for the better) since the events. Also, it would be neat to get initial reactions from those not living in the U.S.; I have not heard many testimonies from those across the pond.

***Also! I wanted to see, have there been any memorial tartans drawn up that I am unaware of? Or other such things?

[cessna152towser]

I'd agree the world has become a better place in the past ten years, largely due to the globalisation brought about by the internet. A decade ago I had never been to the USA and had no friends or family there. I had family in Canada whom I had visited but when I had tried to make a day trip into USA from Canada in 1987 I had found myself barred because I had visited a communist bloc country as a student fifteen years earlier. So I certainly could never have foreseen in 2001 that within the next decade I would make many new friends in the USA and would visit your country twice. I recall my late wife telling about the twin towers incident but it was of little or no immediate concern to me at the time, life went on as normal. However in the ensuing months I began to learn more about America's fight against terrorism through news stories as the British Government opted to support USA in their ensuing actions in Iraq and Afghanistan and the following year I joined the Internet and began to make friends in USA through fora and ancestry research. The history, geography and current events of the USA and other countries have progressively become of much more interest to me over the past decade as I have developed new friendships and indeed I was permitted to visit California in 2009 and New England in 2010. Standing silent and to attention, shoulder to shoulder with an American lady friend at the Ventura Games in 2009 as we listened to the young soloist singing The Star Spangled Banner was a poignant moment which I will never forget. So too was being in Boston on 9th September of last year and attending the Memorial Service to the Fallen Firefighters with a fellow xmarker. I feel the world has become a smaller place within the relatively short timescale of ten years, people mix more readily with people from other nations, races and cultures. Not so long ago a problem elsewhere in the world was someone else's problem, now its mine too, and a problem shared is a problem halved so that should make life better for us all.

Edited to add:- Having now read the following post by Chas I can add that this was also a difficult post for me to write. I would not wish my lack of interest in the twin towers event at the time to be mis-construed either as callous or as anti-American, simply that attitudes tended to be more parochial than they now are - In 2001 I could never have foreseen that within the next decade I would visit USA, nor that I would subsequently date American women and an Arab woman.

[Chas]

I have tried three times to answer this and each time have wiped it out and started again. so now, for the forth time of trying.

Natural disasters tend to focus ones mind. The Indian Ocean tsunami and the earthquake and tsunami in Japan and not forgetting the recent hurricane Irene all go to show man's powerlessness against the forces of nature. Oft times there is no warning. The volcano has been rumbling for a hundred years and one day it blows up. The undersea earthquake gives no warning that we can see. On a small scale, the long week of rain that causes a river to burst its banks and flood a town. All these things and more cause us to look at our own mortality and the mortality of those we love.

On the other hand the events of the 11th of September, I believe, cause us to harden our hearts and not "to be more kind and loving to our fellow humankind". After all, both our countries went to war because of it and not because we had peace in our hearts.

Sorry, this is not the answer you want, but I cannot see this thread not wandering into Rule 5 violations.

Regards

Chas

[Burly Brute]

I have tried three times to answer this and each time have wiped it out and started again. so now, for the forth time of trying.

Natural disasters tend to focus ones mind. The Indian Ocean tsunami and the earthquake and tsunami in Japan and not forgetting the recent hurricane Irene all go to show man's powerlessness against the forces of nature. Oft times there is no warning. The volcano has been rumbling for a hundred years and one day it blows up. The undersea earthquake gives no warning that we can see. On a small scale, the long week of rain that causes a river to burst its banks and flood a town. All these things and more cause us to look at our own mortality and the mortality of those we love.

On the other hand the events of the 11th of September, I believe, cause us to harden our hearts and not "to be more kind and loving to our fellow humankind". After all, both our countries went to war because of it and not because we had peace in our hearts.

Sorry, this is not the answer you want, but I cannot see this thread not wandering into Rule 5 violations.

Regards

Chas

Hopefully it wont, I feel if members write their personal reflections and then leave it at that, and with caution, then it shouldnt rise into an issue. Plus, I believe 10 years is a long time for things to change. In some respects I agree with you, and in others I disagree. But, that doesnt mean the thread can't be civil. Ultimately my intention was to see everyones reflection, and leave it at that.

Edit: An answer period is the answer I want, hurtful retorts are what I wish to stray from. So far so good, although it's only been the two of you guys! Ha.

[Burly Brute]

I thank you both. Even the little bit you guys shared really meant a lot, especially considering the differences in your guys' lives compared to mine. It's really neat seeing different perspectives, and I hope everyone on here can respect that. Ironically, going to a pretty conservative Christian university has opened my eyes to tolerance and understanding world views.


Edit: Also, you folk are my only plentiful outlet for diversity. I mean, don't get me wrong, I interact daily with people from all over the world, but not to the degree and previously established relationship as you all. And that was a huge motivation, along with remembering those who lost their lives 10 years ago.

[Chas]

A little bit more before I go to bed.

I lived and went to school in Toronto when President Kennedy was shot. Because we were in Canada we were allowed to see the Zapruder film in its entirety. If I saw it once in that first week, I saw it a hundred times.

Except for the Americans who could receive Canadian television broadcasts, the majority were kept in the dark. Most Americans did not get to see the film till years later. It was thought to be too distressing for them. But it was too late when they finally got to see it. The conspiracy theories had started and continue to this day.

September the 11th, same but different.

Here in the UK and in a lot of mainland Europe we feel that we have not been told the full story and because of it that we are being lied to. Many of the relatives here in the UK have had conflicting explanations from official sources (UK and US government departments). When this is questioned, there is never an answer. So there is simmering resentment. There is no closure and there is no moving on. For many the grief is as raw today as it was 10 years ago.

Most do not care about the "Why?" it happened. That is in the minds of men and is unfathomable. What most want to know is "What happened?" and that has not been answered, not by a long chalk. The stories and the official versions and the eyewitness statements don't add up. Until they do - that's where we are - in limbo.

Regards

Chas

[longhuntr74]

On September 11, 2001, I had already been in the Army for over 4 years. My wife and I were stationed in Louisiana at the time and on that particular day I was off from work because we were moving from a rental house off-base into post housing. The movers had packed all of our belongings into boxes the previous day and on September 11th they were loading the boxes and furniture into the truck. I remember being stunned about the news...and from a pragmatic perspective, deathly afraid that they wouldn't allow the truck containing all of our early possessions onto base once they got it packed up. Long story short, we got lucky and were able to get the truck on base about an hour before they shut down all the entrances.

In the next month, I remember seeing military vehicles patrolling our neighborhood with Soldiers in the turret and machine guns mounted (rather a silly thing in retrospect...but it made sense at the time I guess). I think it was sometime in early October when my life and career changed. Our unit received our first alerts for deploying forces...to Afghanistan and to the Pentagon. I was serving as a logistics officer at the time and spent months ordering, receiving, and managing inventory on millions of dollars worth of equipment. In late 2002 I assumed command of my first company and then we deployed to Kuwait in early 2003 for the Iraq invasion. Since 2005, I have deployed to Afghanistan 3 times.

September 11 has definitely changed my life...and had an impact on my family as well. The Army that I joined in 1997 is now a totally different organization...better in some ways...worse in others. As far as our Country or the World?? I think perhaps the same might be said.

[O'Callaghan]

I agree with Chas. I can't see how it has made anything better. Quite the reverse. The problem with posting this here is I can't really tell you what I think.

I had a flat tyre on the way to work that day, which made me run late. Then I found myself trying to get into Washington while everyone else was trying to get out. It dawned on me at that point that evacuating the city was actually a complete impossibility.

At some point while I was in gridlocked traffic they spoke about the twin towers on the radio. It was surreal and hard to believe.

Where I worked at the time was near the Pentagon, and I came over the 14th St bridge out of Washington and into Virginia and saw huge plumes of smoke to my right coming from the Pentagon (Yes, that's confusing if you thought the Pentagon was in Washington, but it isn't). Those who had got to work on time heard and felt the impact.

[Taygrd]

I really do not think the world has changed all that much, we may be just more aware of it. Atrocities has been present on the earth as long as man has been here and will be here long after all of the X Markers are gone. I remember in 1992 the first talk of WMD and how to respond to it, then came Oklahoma City, Atlanta, and 9-11. We knew it was coming, we saw what was happening in the Middle East, Tokyo, and Africa. Some folks blame these things on God, gods, sin, or some grand conspiracy theory but in reality our very existence perpetuates it. "Man's inhumanity towards man" has been around for centuries.
So when I look back and remember that day and being put on alert, concerned and angry about what had just happened. I remember the deep desire to do something, anything to feel useful. I guess it was because it was a way to stave off the uncertainty of it all. Now ten years later I guess I learned to deal with uncertainty better since it is still present yet I do not feel the urgency for action as much. Am I more vigilant, yes-who isn't. I guess we can talk about the lion laying down with the lamb all we want to, however we can never really change the hearts of those intent on doing us harm.

[creagdhubh]

On September 11, 2001, I had already been in the Army for over 4 years. My wife and I were stationed in Louisiana at the time and on that particular day I was off from work because we were moving from a rental house off-base into post housing. The movers had packed all of our belongings into boxes the previous day and on September 11th they were loading the boxes and furniture into the truck. I remember being stunned about the news...and from a pragmatic perspective, deathly afraid that they wouldn't allow the truck containing all of our early possessions onto base once they got it packed up. Long story short, we got lucky and were able to get the truck on base about an hour before they shut down all the entrances.

In the next month, I remember seeing military vehicles patrolling our neighborhood with Soldiers in the turret and machine guns mounted (rather a silly thing in retrospect...but it made sense at the time I guess). I think it was sometime in early October when my life and career changed. Our unit received our first alerts for deploying forces...to Afghanistan and to the Pentagon. I was serving as a logistics officer at the time and spent months ordering, receiving, and managing inventory on millions of dollars worth of equipment. In late 2002 I assumed command of my first company and then we deployed to Kuwait in early 2003 for the Iraq invasion. Since 2005, I have deployed to Afghanistan 3 times.

September 11 has definitely changed my life...and had an impact on my family as well. The Army that I joined in 1997 is now a totally different organization...better in some ways...worse in others. As far as our Country or the World?? I think perhaps the same might be said.

I agree, September 11, 2001 changed my life forever as well. I was on active-duty in the U.S. Marine Corps, stationed at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, when the U.S. was attacked. My unit and I watched the live broadcast on television at our battalion headquarters. I too deployed. My unit was immediately sent to Afghanistan for Operation Enduring Freedom in 2001, and also to Iraq in 2003 for Operation Iraqi Freedom. I also spent a wee bit of time in Kuwait. I was able to meet many of the fine men, fighting alongside us, from the UK. Outstanding warriors indeed.

Me, my lovely wife, Stephanie (also a former active-duty U.S. Marine, who served during the 9/11 attacks) and the Assistant Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps, June 2011 - Saint Louis, Missouri "Marine Week."


God Bless the USA and Semper Fidelis,