Some thoughts on 9/11, written on 9/12
Sep. 12th, 2006 11:28 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
teddywolfYesterday I said Happy Monday. I meant it too. I had a lot to say but I decided it would be better to be a day later this once.
Five years and one day ago, the US woke up in its normal way. It took a shower, brushed its teeth, got dressed, had some coffee and a bowl of cereal, and went off to work. Shortly before nine in the morning, the US was walking down the street and was viciously mugged. It got a black eye. Immediately its relatives, neighbors, friends, and even honorable enemies offered aid and comfort.
Five years after it got hit, the US still has a black eye. Part of the body of the US keeps picking at the eye, and sometimes cutting at other parts of the body that weren't hurt during the mugging. When it doesn't look black enough at the right time, that part applies dark makeup around the eye.
That part of the body keeps saying, 'See! We still have a black eye! And look at how the mugger hurt the rest of me!' At the same time it says, 'We're healing nicely.'
Five years is a long time to keep a black eye.
A cousin of mine worked down the street from the World Trade Center. After the first plane hit he left his office and headed for home. Initially he seemed fine. The trouble came later, and I will call it spiritual trauma and leave it at that. Any more is is story to tell as it is not particularly public. His family is still together and they celebrate that fact even during fractious times. There is stress, but they are coping. Stress has caused fractures.
In 1999, I had dinner with several people in New York City. One of them was a man I knew only by the Internet, by the name of Liam. I did not know him well. What I knew of him I liked. He seemed a decent man, and by 'decent' I mean 'intelligent, possessed of good humor, sympathetic and willing to help people'. Actually I may be projecting the last part on from later, because I couldn't get a proper appreciation of that from dinner conversation. But he seemed good, and good people like helping people.
In 2001 he worked in the World Trade Center. He had a good job and made good money. When the planes hit, he started helping rescue workers evacuate people. By accounts, he went in one last time to try to get just one or two more people out. He did not come back out.
He is missed - by his wife, by his child, by his relatives and friends. His family didn't just get a black eye that day. They ended up with a Liam-shaped hole in their lives. There is still some grief there, I think, though how much I cannot say as I am not currently in contact with them. Ultimately, though, it is their place to grieve and our place to support them in their grieving and hope that some healing can come. I am sorry to say I was not as understanding of that one simple tenet back then as I am now - not that I didn't know it, just that I did not let my empathy continue on as strong when I should have. For this, my sincere apologies.
The whole country took an economic blow that day, but comparatively few immediate families lost a family member and only two cities suffered hits to their architecture. The Pentagon has been repaired. You don't hear much about it nowadays, not regarding 9/11. The City of New York still has a raw wound where two very big buildings once stood.
The Pentagon has rebuilt and is humming along well. Its fractures have healed.
Healing has not happened for New York.
Many rescue workers stayed near the ruins of the World Trade Center for days, weeks, months, uncovering the wounded, the dying and the dead. They breathed in remains of the buildings, remains of the people. They were told by the government that the air quality was fine. Most got or are getting lung disease and diminished lung capacity.
The President of the United States stood with these rescue workers for an hour or three and called them heroes, loudly proclaiming his admiration for them. His party, which is in charge of the branches of government that write the laws and execute the laws, have quietly kept many of these workers from proper care.
That same political party, which talks loudly about security, has opposed most measures to secure cargo on ships, cargo on airlines, and beef up security around power plants and chemical plants. They speak loudly but carry a miniscule stick.
I absolutely despise that the events of September 11, 2001 are used for partisan political ends. I really don't like that I'm pointing out that it's one political party trying to sweep the rescue workers under the rug; but they are, and so I am. Health should transcend politics.
One aim of a terrorist is, by definition, to strike fear into the hearts of his enemy. Fear came to New York City five years and one day ago, but a calm came to the residents as well. A reasoning man with terrorist enemies will know that the terrorist will try to hurt him. He should use caution, and yes, caution is born of fear; but he should not be ruled by his fear, nor should he let his fear override his caution.
The sad thing is, more people are scared of what happened on September 11, 2001 now than they were five years ago. The thing about fear is, it does not grow unless it has fertile ground; and in the absence of stress that causes fear, fear will go away.
There have been many, many people feeding the fear. Fear can override logic and sense, and the people feeding the fear have good reasons for wanting your logic and sense to stay quiet.
We are not healing nicely while the fear runs our lives.
It's past time that people let their logic and sense wake up.
Five years and one day ago, the US woke up in its normal way. It took a shower, brushed its teeth, got dressed, had some coffee and a bowl of cereal, and went off to work. Shortly before nine in the morning, the US was walking down the street and was viciously mugged. It got a black eye. Immediately its relatives, neighbors, friends, and even honorable enemies offered aid and comfort.
Five years after it got hit, the US still has a black eye. Part of the body of the US keeps picking at the eye, and sometimes cutting at other parts of the body that weren't hurt during the mugging. When it doesn't look black enough at the right time, that part applies dark makeup around the eye.
That part of the body keeps saying, 'See! We still have a black eye! And look at how the mugger hurt the rest of me!' At the same time it says, 'We're healing nicely.'
Five years is a long time to keep a black eye.
A cousin of mine worked down the street from the World Trade Center. After the first plane hit he left his office and headed for home. Initially he seemed fine. The trouble came later, and I will call it spiritual trauma and leave it at that. Any more is is story to tell as it is not particularly public. His family is still together and they celebrate that fact even during fractious times. There is stress, but they are coping. Stress has caused fractures.
In 1999, I had dinner with several people in New York City. One of them was a man I knew only by the Internet, by the name of Liam. I did not know him well. What I knew of him I liked. He seemed a decent man, and by 'decent' I mean 'intelligent, possessed of good humor, sympathetic and willing to help people'. Actually I may be projecting the last part on from later, because I couldn't get a proper appreciation of that from dinner conversation. But he seemed good, and good people like helping people.
In 2001 he worked in the World Trade Center. He had a good job and made good money. When the planes hit, he started helping rescue workers evacuate people. By accounts, he went in one last time to try to get just one or two more people out. He did not come back out.
He is missed - by his wife, by his child, by his relatives and friends. His family didn't just get a black eye that day. They ended up with a Liam-shaped hole in their lives. There is still some grief there, I think, though how much I cannot say as I am not currently in contact with them. Ultimately, though, it is their place to grieve and our place to support them in their grieving and hope that some healing can come. I am sorry to say I was not as understanding of that one simple tenet back then as I am now - not that I didn't know it, just that I did not let my empathy continue on as strong when I should have. For this, my sincere apologies.
The whole country took an economic blow that day, but comparatively few immediate families lost a family member and only two cities suffered hits to their architecture. The Pentagon has been repaired. You don't hear much about it nowadays, not regarding 9/11. The City of New York still has a raw wound where two very big buildings once stood.
The Pentagon has rebuilt and is humming along well. Its fractures have healed.
Healing has not happened for New York.
Many rescue workers stayed near the ruins of the World Trade Center for days, weeks, months, uncovering the wounded, the dying and the dead. They breathed in remains of the buildings, remains of the people. They were told by the government that the air quality was fine. Most got or are getting lung disease and diminished lung capacity.
The President of the United States stood with these rescue workers for an hour or three and called them heroes, loudly proclaiming his admiration for them. His party, which is in charge of the branches of government that write the laws and execute the laws, have quietly kept many of these workers from proper care.
That same political party, which talks loudly about security, has opposed most measures to secure cargo on ships, cargo on airlines, and beef up security around power plants and chemical plants. They speak loudly but carry a miniscule stick.
I absolutely despise that the events of September 11, 2001 are used for partisan political ends. I really don't like that I'm pointing out that it's one political party trying to sweep the rescue workers under the rug; but they are, and so I am. Health should transcend politics.
One aim of a terrorist is, by definition, to strike fear into the hearts of his enemy. Fear came to New York City five years and one day ago, but a calm came to the residents as well. A reasoning man with terrorist enemies will know that the terrorist will try to hurt him. He should use caution, and yes, caution is born of fear; but he should not be ruled by his fear, nor should he let his fear override his caution.
The sad thing is, more people are scared of what happened on September 11, 2001 now than they were five years ago. The thing about fear is, it does not grow unless it has fertile ground; and in the absence of stress that causes fear, fear will go away.
There have been many, many people feeding the fear. Fear can override logic and sense, and the people feeding the fear have good reasons for wanting your logic and sense to stay quiet.
We are not healing nicely while the fear runs our lives.
It's past time that people let their logic and sense wake up.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2006-09-12 08:20 pm (UTC)Actually, they thump their chests loudly and fence with a toothpick.
If I could draw I think I would draw a picture of Shrub and cronies peeking out from behind the skirts of Lady Liberty shouting insults at kids smaller than they are and expecting her to protect ehem.