nmah6001.xml

nmah6001.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2003-09-11

On the morning of Sept. 11, I was online, checking my e-mail, when a message popped up from a member of one of my groups: "Anyone who is watching these terrible events on TV...," or something to that effect. I quickly went into the next room and turned on the TV. Of course CNN and all the major networks were playing stories of the strikes against the Towers (they hadn't yet fallen, but did soon afterward). The TV stayed on all that day until about 11 at night. We ate in front of it, and I kept orbiting between it and the computer as people posted reactions to the events and several of my lists put out calls to members for a "roll call"--"yes, I'm here, I'm OK." Next morning I turned on the TV as soon as I was dressed, and again it stayed on until about 9 or 10 PM. This is something we had never done, not even when JFK was assassinated--perhaps because Presidents have been assassinated in the past, but the attacks of 9/11 were unprecedented in American history.

I live in a small, out-of-the-way, rather depressed city (Scranton, PA) which is very unlikely to be a target of terrorist attacks, so my day-to-day life goes on very much as it always has. I read news stories about the developing War on Terror when they appear on my computer, but I don't obsess about the news--I think obsessing about anything is bad for you. I might think twice about taking an airplane somewhere, but it would be at least as much because trains and busses are cheaper than because I might fear being hijacked.

First, we should never forget the innocent people who were going about their lawful occasions on their home ground when they were senselessly murdered by a group of misguided religious fanatics. Nor should we ever forget the hero firefighters and police officers who went above and beyond the call of duty or were lost because their radios weren't up to snuff. (We need to make sure that all such people are equipped with up-to-date tools for communication.) We must dedicate ourselves to finding and severely punishing anyone who was in any way connected to the attacks, Osama binLaden first and foremost. But we must also keep in mind that *most* Muslims are neither fanatics nor murderers, and that they should be accepted as fellow human beings on a case-by-case basis. Of course all members of al-Qaida are by definition outlaws and the enemies of civilization and humanity, and there should be a bounty on the head of every one of them--half as much alive as dead, because it would be impossible for them to get an "impartial" trial in this country anyway.

I hope that the great outpouring of solidarity from countries all over the world which was so evident immediately after the attacks can be to some extent recovered, but I'm afraid it won't be unless and until other Western nations like England, France, and Germany also suffer attacks against their property and people.

I hope that eventually a large portion of Ground Zero in NYC will become a memorial to the thousands who lost their lives. To me it seems sacrilege to think of rebuilding there--it's a graveyard now. I can see and support having a Memorial Center where video clips, artifacts, and tributes (like this one) can be viewed by the public and by future generations, and perhaps an ecumenical chapel of some kind, but that's all.

I didn't fly it because I had no way to do so. But I did tape a paper copy of it (published in my local newspaper) to my front window, and plan to continue displaying it in some fashion until al-Qaida is destroyed.