And Now for Something Completely Different

Remembering This Day

Posted Sunday, September 11, 2011, at 11:03 AM

By the time I woke up on September 11, 2001 the towers had already been hit. I was living in Lincoln at the time. I, my brother, and three of our friends had just moved to Lincoln a few months earlier. I walked downstairs to see that my brother and one of our roommates were sitting in the living room. I asked them why they were home (they both worked the day shift so there was no reason for them to be home), all they did was simply point at the screen.

When I turned to look both of the twin towers were billowing smoke with two huge holes in them. At the time there was mass confusion about what had actually happened. All that was known was that two planes, probably the size of commercial airliners had hit the towers. Though nothing had been confirmed and no groups had yet to take the blame, everyone pretty much knew that it was a terrorist attack.

I sat there in disbelief as the images began pouring in of people with no more hope left began jumping from the floors above where the holes had been punctured.

Then it happened, the first tower fell, and then the second. As the minutes and hours progressed we learned that the Pentagon had also been hit and that a plane (as we would later learn was Flight 93) had crashed in a field in Pennsylvania.

The rest of that day I spent time on the phone with my parents and my older brother. There were rumors that gas prices were skyrocketing across the country. My roommate and I finally had enough of the coverage, it was just to sad, so we did the only thing we knew to do. We went down into the basement and began playing music. It was soothing. It did not allow us to forget what was going on in New York and Washington, but it did allow us to escape somewhat and that was needed.

I remember going outside at one point in the late afternoon to smoke. I looked to the sky and saw something that I do not really ever remember seeing. As it became apparent that terrorists were using planes as weapons the entire nations air space had become restricted. No planes were allowed to fly. What I saw in the sky was a clear sky. I was born into an age a jet air travel so I had become use to seeing jet trails in the sky. This day I saw none. It was both terrifying and amazing all at the same time.

It was an unforgettable day...

Please post with your own remembrances of 9/11. Please refrain from posting off topic. This is a day we should always remember with respect towards those that were lost.

Never forget.

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Nice post Michael.

-- Posted by doodle bug on Sun, Sep 11, 2011, at 11:51 AM
Agreed. Never Forget, but Never allow our youth to Forget, so they are not asleep at the wheel, of life, love, or hate.

-- Posted by Navyblue on Sun, Sep 11, 2011, at 12:57 PM
I was actually getting ready to go to sleep,(I worked nights then), when I caught the news about the first airplane. As I was watching the news of that event I caught live the second plane. I remember the comment of something like 'this is not an accident, it has to be an attack' while watching. Well, I stayed up about 36 hours watching the coverage, and was glad that I didn't have to work the next day.

-- Posted by Sir Didymus on Sun, Sep 11, 2011, at 2:36 PM
It was a day you will never forget.

The reaction to the attack still lingers. We started two wars that have cost more lives than the attack did.

And now we have the Patriot Act, Homeland Security and the Transportation Safety Administration. We have given up a lot of freedom in the name of security.

-- Posted by Boomer62 on Sun, Sep 11, 2011, at 8:11 PM
I was sitting at home waiting for the UPS driver to deliver some items. Turned on to Fox News when the 1st airplane hit the tower. Watched in amazement, then the 2nd airplane hit. I knew full well we were now under attack. How many more I wondered.

The UPS driver arrived and he had heard on the radio what was happening. Together we watched as the Pentagon was hit, and later a plane had drastically headed off course and disappeared. Then the towers came down.

I also remember the erie feeling of looking up and seeing no airplanes in the sky for several days.

We have sacrificed some freedoms for safety. Personally, I like going about my day and not worrying about terrorist strikes. A few minor inconveniences, but it use the internet, e-mail, text, and use my cell phone with no questions from the feds.

Lives have been lost in two military campaigns. Are those live lost in vain? No, those brave men and women served our country so that we may go about our lives. I greatly respect that. How many more lives would be lost if we did nothing? The role of our government is to serve the common good (for EVERY citizen), this includes infrastructure, justice, and defense. So absolutely yes, our military is doing their jobs quite well.

-- Posted by Hugh Jassle on Sun, Sep 11, 2011, at 10:56 PM
It may surprise many but the coverage I watched when I was watching came via Sheppard Smith of Fox News.

-- Posted by MichaelHendricks on Mon, Sep 12, 2011, at 11:31 AM
Chunky, I don't think you are completely aware of what is in the Patriot Act.

If they deem you to be a "potential terrorist" (which is a highly subjective matter), they can spy on your emails, your phone conversations, arrest you and not allow you an attorney, hold you indefinitely without a hearing (years?!).

Who are potential terrorists? Here is a list from the FBI sent to merchants a few short weeks ago. http://oathkeepers.org/oath/2011/08/10/7769/

The St Louis FBI office previously listed as potential terrorists: military veterans, Christian fundamentalists, gun rights advocates, members of the conservative right, home schoolers, etc. Anybody who does not fit their "big government is good" agenda.

You might actually fit their definition.

But don't worry, you can trust our government, especially the FBI--remember Waco, Ruby Ridge. Remember how the FBI went after Martin Luther King, and the Vietnam War protesters. Yeah, you can trust them to protect your rights.

-- Posted by Boomer62 on Tue, Sep 13, 2011, at 11:43 AM
Here's an article that communicates what I am trying to convey, in a much better fashion, concerning the loss of our Bill of Rights due to 9-11-01.

http://dailyreckoning.com/at-the-expense-of-liberty/

The NSA able to listen in to over 100 million phone conversationsa at one time!

Over 99% of all warrantless wire taps and email taps have been over drugs, and fraud investigations. Less than 1% attacking terrorism. What the Patriot Act has brought us is horrible!

And the only candidate railing against it is Ron Paul. But the liberal media has kicked him to the curb as radical and irrelevant.

Wake up America. If this is what remembering 9-11 has brought us, we'd do better to forget about it.

-- Posted by Boomer62 on Tue, Sep 13, 2011, at 3:19 PM
Boomer62,

Actually I do fit most of your criteria for a potential terrorist. Yet I converse via e-mail, text, facebook, and cell phone. No harassments from the feds yet. But what's really cool, I don't spend a moment during the day worrying about it, terrorism or big brother.

Waco and Ruby Ridge were both very unfortunate and illegal events. Sadly, those responsible were never held accountable.

-- Posted by Hugh Jassle on Tue, Sep 13, 2011, at 4:48 PM
I remember the day, and I remember the months after the day being a unified effort by US citizens to rebuild and refocus. I remember the best intelligence pointing toward WMD's and I remember congress almost unilaterally voting to engage in efforts to quell terrorism.

Then I remember the purposeful unraveling of that unity for the purposes of political gain.

And the vitriol and deception has only gotten worse since then.

-- Posted by Mickel on Sat, Sep 17, 2011, at 2:00 PM
Here is a fascinating article that appeared in the Lincoln Journal Star on September 11th. The article entitled "The Waning of America" reminds me of what Samuel Adams once wrote:

"No people will tamely surrender their Liberties, nor can any be easily subdued, when knowledge is diffused and virtue is preserved. On the Contrary, when People are universally ignorant, and debauched in their Manners, they will sink under their own weight, without the Aid of foreign Invaders."

― Samuel Adams

http://journalstar.com/news/opinion/editorial/columnists/article_6b4f87a8-8dbb-5...

-- Posted by Benevolus on Sun, Sep 18, 2011, at 1:36 PM

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