nmah1497.xml

nmah1497.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-08

I learned of the 1st plane as I sat in my hot tub listening to NPR news on headphones, but then I took them off and got dressed and drove to the BART station. I read my book on the train, and as I came out of the station onto Market Street, I overheard a couple of people say something about a 2nd Plane. And there were lots of people on the street outside the Mills Building (Stock Exchange and Options Traders) almost all in animated conversation and/or on cell phones.

A couple of minutes later my wife called my cell and asked where I was - I told her I was in the City on my way to the Main Office. She told me of the attack on the 2 towers, said she had seen the 2nd plane hit. She told me to stay away from the BofA Building! I was standing at the street light waiting to cross the intersection next to the tallest building in San Francisco, the 52-story Bank of America Building. She said to get away, as there were still several planes that had not landed as a result of the FAA immediate grounding order, and one of them was a San Francisco bound (Flight 92).

Yes.
I have not taken down our American Flag.
I still don't know what the terrorists meant to prove.
I understand that all extremism that involves hurting or killing other people is the greatest sin.
I understand that Muslim societies in most of the Middle East are where the religion IS the state.
I recognize that in the US, and most Western societies, where religion and the state are seperate, is correct.
I clearly see that any religion can only, by its very nature, try to impose its dogma and doctrine when it has the power of the state as well.
I do not blame Islam, I blame all extremists. And really only those who would use their religion as a reason for harming, hurting or killing others. Religion that does this is a pariah, as it violates the only and single true moral absolute - the Golden Rule. But we cannot war against a religion, as it isn't a thing, it is a belief. We can only seek and demand justice for the wrong acts done to others in the name of any religion.

That the freedom our society and nation has, the very thing that makes us who we are, also makes us vulnerable to these attacks. We must remember that the guilty are still out there, and any deviation from finding them and bringing them to justice is wrong. Pre-emptive wars, to change one set of despotic leaders, are secondary. We must recognize that soverign nations that harbor terrorists are not our enemy, only those in that country who allow it. But we must find and punish Bin Laden and his cabal, nothing else is as important as that.

Haven't stopped flying it. Nothing has changed. I understand the dynamics of our nation are such that there are those who have the mindset and the freedom to burn it. Just like the freedom the terrorists used to enable them to set fire to the WTC and the Pentagon. If my falg was burned, I would just put up another one. That's what we should do in lower Manhattan. Put up two (or more) even taller buildings (or towers that reach as high - that will act as a reminder of what was lost, what was gained, and what we stand for. Memorialize the site. It is the right thing, and a tall structure, even taller than WTC 1 and 2 is needed. We didn't leave the hole in the Pentagon, did we?