On writing on 9/11, on and on
I’m not going to lie: I have a hard time writing about 9/11.
This is (for the most part) a political blog, but politics seems like a very small topic for a day like today. 9/11 is a messy day, not just because it’s still full of sorrow and anger for so many people who lost loved ones that day or any of the hard days that followed, but because still it is not a closed case.
On a micro level, there are still discoveries, such as the note that a Connecticut man dropped from a window on the 84th floor of Two World Trade Center that day, and which reached his family just before last year’s decennial remembrance, and which finally made it into the press this week. A fresh wound for them and, albeit on a much smaller scale, for the rest of us, too.
On a macro level, there’s a war in Afghanistan that began shortly thereafter and continues to this day. There are still tens of thousands of Americans fighting in that war, being shot at by our enemies and our alleged friends. Their mission, their fate, are still deathly important to them and their families, and should be to the rest of us, too. But to talk about those things today feels off-putting, because it invariably means diving into the politics involved in making decisions about the war and thus getting away from the unity of the day, and it feels cheap, because it’s too easy to talk about those things today and ignore them for the other 364.25 days of the year. (I am far too guilty of that myself.)
On a personal level, I feel like most people are out of things to say by now, myself included. I was working in a carpet mill that day, a month away from starting my job with the Associated Press, and didn’t even hear about the attacks until someone from the office part of the building told me in the break room at lunchtime. I still didn’t comprehend what had happened for another four hours, when I finally got a chance to see a television and the images of what had happened and was still happening, images and events that were nearly impossible to imagine before 9/11 and impossible to forget ever since.
What I remember most is the visceral reaction I and everyone else had, and that was best captured by people who spent that day capturing it instead of shuttling rugs around a mill. To this day, I prefer re-reading what was written then to almost anything written more recently. If you’ve never read Dan McLaughlin’s eyewitness account from back then, today’s the day to read it. For a longer treatment, Tom Junod’s 2009 exploration of the “falling man” photograph is haunting. Feel free to share others in the comment thread.
And feel free to share your own memories and thoughts, even the political ones. Heck, this is still a mostly free country. Just because I had to get this off my chest before getting on with the rest of my day doesn’t mean you have to do the same.
– By Kyle Wingfield
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263 comments Add your comment
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
8:35 am
As I surmised. A principled stance IS too complicated for Finn to understand.
Color me shocked.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
8:35 am
Of course, maybe Finn just likes to be groped . . .
gm
September 12th, 2012
8:37 am
Mtt, who have sent are jobs overseas Romney bashing the President for the attack in Libyan, this war hawk is ready to send troops, I wonder will he send his rich sons to fight? no, he will send poor whites, middle class to fight.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
8:37 am
Got it gm.
Blame Bush alone for 9/11.
Don’t blame Obama for getting his ambassador killed.
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
September 12th, 2012
8:39 am
Cons, take note that those attacks didn’t occur on US soil.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
8:39 am
Just when does sovereign U.S. territory no longer become sovereign U.S. Territory, gm?
Who would want to work for ANY administration which fails to protect their ambassadors in foreign lands?
gm
September 12th, 2012
8:41 am
Tiberius – pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
Stop trying to rewrite history, Bush will always be remembered for the first attack inside American soil, I think 3500 American more then 3 Americans.
Poor Bush name can not even be mention by rep leaders wonder why??????/
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
8:46 am
gm, you might wish to READ what someone posts before commenting. I do not attempt to rewrite history, but rather, put the whole chain of events in the proper perspective.
Unlike you.
The failure of 9/11 has MANY fathers, if looked at in a non-partisan way.
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
September 12th, 2012
8:51 am
The failure of 9/11 has MANY fathers… but George W Bush isn’t one of them.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
8:53 am
Of course, Finn, I never wrote that.
But keep believing your fantasy world.
cc
September 12th, 2012
9:06 am
The wonderful peace-loving muslims marked the anniversary of 9/11 in Libya and Egypt resulting in the deaths of Americans. What can we expect from the ‘empty chair’ in response? Doubtless, another apology tour is necessary and increased financial aid will be a consideration.
America has no discernible foreign policy and has not had such since January, 2009. The only perceivable portion of our non-existent foreign policy has been appeasement, and we are reaping the dividends.
America faces no crisis in leadership. We have none . . .
David R. Boag, DDS
September 12th, 2012
9:19 am
Tiberius,
Your message was understood. It was primarily a timing thing. However, suggesting that my post was somehow vitriolic might be a little much. Nor was I blaming ANYONE. Reread the post. Did it make a statement about our culture? Yes. That’s a fair criticism, and as I noted, you were right. It could wait. And I issued an apology to you and others who might have found it inappropriate for the day.
BTW, my family lost a friend that day. He was a fire chief that was witnessed entering the North Tower 4 minutes before its collapse. Somewhat miraculously, even though many rescuers’ families had no traces of their loved ones to bury, they actually found his fireman’s hat. That was what was placed in his coffin.
I had already spent a good part of my day thinking about what we went through on that and the following few days. Perhaps my wanting to vent a little was a result of having done that for most of the day.
Del
September 12th, 2012
9:19 am
McTool says…Cons, take note that those attacks didn’t occur on US soil.
An embassy is considered to be that nations soil within the host country and failing to protect it could be considered an act of war.
cc
September 12th, 2012
9:22 am
gm @ 8:41 am:
I guess you conveniently ‘forgot’ the attack on the World Trade Center during the Clinton years? Don’t let FACTS cloud your teeny little brain, gm. Carry on . . .
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
9:27 am
Yeah, Del, I was going to address Finn’s lack of understanding on THAT issue as well.
As we have seen, CIVILIZED countries consider embassies to be sovereign territory. That is why England didn’t interfere with that fool Assange as he spoke from a balcony in London.
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
September 12th, 2012
9:32 am
Assange is a fool because he works to keep our government officials honest?
I suppose you folks are still po’d at Bernstein and Woodward for exposing the Nixon stuff?
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
9:37 am
“Assange is a fool because he works to keep our government officials honest?”
No, he’s a fool for allegedly raping someone and using the U.S. as a scapegoat for not going back to his country to face the charges.
Please try to keep up with reality and not project your moronic conclusions without factual data, OK, Finn?
Del
September 12th, 2012
9:50 am
I wonder if the Commander-n-Chief Narcissist will stay in Washington and address the nation concerning this 9-11-12 Islamic terrorist attack on American soil or fly out to Vegas on Air Force One to do some campaigning.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
9:52 am
He’s scheduled to speak at 10:35, Del. No word on whether he’ll stick to his campaign schedule after that.
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
September 12th, 2012
9:55 am
Consider the story of Bain Capital and Duane Reade. Bain purchased the drugstore chain and hired a CEO who was later convicted of investor fraud, while the chain itself was selling out-of-date drugs and baby formula to its customers.
Duane Reade’s story is not unlike that of Damon International, whose Bain-anointed CEO was convicted for tricking doctors into ordering unnecessary procedures and billing them (ironically enough) to Medicare. Apparently Romney and Bain had an eye for healthcare talent: an evil eye.
But even that isn’t the biggest part of the story. This is: Mitt Romney and Bain Capital were among the first to to engage in the kinds of highly leveraged buyouts of private healthcare companies that pressures them to overtreat patients and overbill payers just to satisfy their investors.
http://www.alternet.org/election-2012/sick-money-how-mitt-romneys-bain-investments-are-exploding-deficit-and-harming-our
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
September 12th, 2012
9:59 am
he’s a fool for allegedly raping someone
guilty until proven innocent?
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
9:59 am
Ah. When exposed for the fallacies and idiocies he posts, Finn resorts to more liberal blog site attacks against Romney and Bain.
MarkV
September 12th, 2012
10:00 am
Some people are so anxious to use tragic news for their political purposes that they do not even wait to get the facts straight.
“An embassy is considered to be that nations soil within the host country and failing to protect it could be considered an act of war.”
“As we have seen, CIVILIZED countries consider embassies to be sovereign territory.”
The US embassy in Libya is in Tripoli, not in Benghazi, where the Ambassador and the other persons were killed. And they were not killed in the consulate there either, but in a car.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
10:16 am
Some people are so anxious to defend the indefensible that they do not even get their facts straight.
Wherever our ambassador is, that’s sovereign U.S. territory.
There is NO excuse for killing an ambassador of ANY nation, and the location of same has no bearing on the crime.
iggy
September 12th, 2012
10:19 am
Those Libyan and Egyptian peaceNiks. Damn hippies.
iggy
September 12th, 2012
10:26 am
For every American killed 1000 muslims should pay the ultimate price. Murder, death, destruction is the only thing these primitives understand and they should receive it, “in abundance.”
Del
September 12th, 2012
10:27 am
“Some people are so anxious to use tragic news for their political purposes that they do not even wait to get the facts straight.”
Some people are so anxious to downplay Islamic terrorism that they don’t even try to understand the laws of international diplomacy.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
10:32 am
The interesting thing about all this is that if Obama and NATO hadn’t interfered in the Libyan uprising, the Islamic fascists might not now be in charge and these killers wouldn’t have been able to protest in the way they did.
Actions have consequences.
iggy
September 12th, 2012
10:41 am
Perhaps if Oprah would give all these radicals a new Pontiac that might resolve the issue.
Oh wait, Pontiac is kaput.
MarkV
September 12th, 2012
10:44 am
“Some people are so anxious to downplay Islamic terrorism that they”
I do not know who has been downplaying Islamic terrorism, but the rest of the above statement is certainly true – some people “don’t even try to understand the laws of international diplomacy.” Such as those who believe that a diplomatic mission – and even a car –is a sovereign territory of the represented state. It is not.
cc
September 12th, 2012
10:45 am
MarkV @ 10:00 am:
“And they were not killed in the consulate there either, but in a car.”
Perhaps they were attempting to flee an embassy under siege?
Are you a muslim?
SBinF
September 12th, 2012
10:46 am
I mostly remember how an administration took the country’s collective goodwill and used it to begin two unfunded wars with no viable victory plan.
And now I see the same “experts” who wrongly called Afghanistan and Iraq marching us toward a similar experience with Iran, shameful.
A sad, sad legacy from a terrible event.
MarkV
September 12th, 2012
10:46 am
“The interesting thing about all this is that if Obama and NATO hadn’t interfered in the Libyan uprising, the Islamic fascists might not now be in charge …”
And pigs might fly.
iggy
September 12th, 2012
10:47 am
Then again had it been a Pontiac Aztec that may have been akin to attempting to extinguish a fire using gasoline.
MarkV
September 12th, 2012
10:48 am
cc @10:45 am
Is your brain working?
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
11:04 am
“Such as those who believe that a diplomatic mission – and even a car –is a sovereign territory of the represented state. It is not.”
Tell that to an ambassador.
Epic fail, MarkV.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
11:05 am
Don’t ask a question you can’t answer for yourself, MarkV.
MarkV
September 12th, 2012
11:07 am
“Tell that to an ambassador.
Epic fail, MarkV.”
A typical stupidity, not related to the issue.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
11:11 am
A typical response from you, MarkV, never admitting your faulty information.
MarkV
September 12th, 2012
11:13 am
Tiberius,
Why don’t you try to support your ignorant, faulty information?
Del
September 12th, 2012
11:18 am
MarkV seems to be saying that open season on foreign ambassador’s by mobs isn’t the responsibility of the host state therefore, holding the Libyan government accountable for failing to control the situation that led to the deaths of American diplomats would be inappropriate.
MarkV
September 12th, 2012
11:23 am
Del @11:18 am “MarkV seems to be saying that open season on foreign ambassador’s by mobs isn’t the responsibility of the host state therefore, holding the Libyan government accountable for failing to control the situation that led to the deaths of American diplomats would be inappropriate.”
What “seems” to you, Del, is plain idiocy and falsehood, or your temporary (hopefully) insanity. Show anything I have written that supports your nonsense.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
11:24 am
“Why don’t you try to support your ignorant, faulty information?”
Or better yet, why don’t you debunk CENTURIES of law and precedent to support your foolish argument, MarkV?
Seems like you might be the only person on Earth that doesn’t know that you may not kill another country’s ambassador.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
11:28 am
Del, understand that MarkV is quick to point out that his nebulous statements can’t be used to indict him on his beliefs, because he’ll always say, “I never wrote that” or “Show me where I wrote that”, all the while never making a stand but always finding some way to disagree with others while providing no factual basis for that disagreement.
It is his modus operandi – stand for nothing, complain about everything.
MarkV
September 12th, 2012
11:37 am
When somebody starts a jingoistic rant about “act of war,” (Del @9:19 am), it is time to check the facts. On one hand, we have the fact that the terrorist actions in Libya have been strongly condemned by both the Libyan and US government. Apart from that, some posts here contained false facts, such as the one about “sovereignty” of the diplomatic missions, and even the laughable nonsense that “wherever our ambassador is, that’s sovereign U.S. territory.”
Those, who are really interested in the laws regarding diplomatic missions, might check the pertinent document, The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, specifically Article 22.
http://untreaty.un.org/ilc/texts/instruments/english/conventions/9_1_1961.pdf
Del
September 12th, 2012
11:39 am
MarkV, How about your misinformed ignorant nonsense that you posted at 10:44 am. Worse than your ignorance is that you appear to be relieving the Libyan government from any responsibility. This incident requires a full investigation to determine what level of aid did Libyan authorities render to protect the Ambassador and his staff? Were there any casualties suffered by Libyan police or military attempting to thwart the attack? This just can’t be written off as an unfortunate incident. Libya must cooperate fully in tracking down and bringing those directly responsible to full justice.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
11:41 am
“On one hand, we have the fact that the terrorist actions in Libya have been strongly condemned by both the Libyan and US government.”
Well considering that it was the Libyan “government” that was entrusted to safeguard our embassy and consulates, their “condemnation” rings a bit hollow this morning, MarkV.
MarkV
September 12th, 2012
11:41 am
Tiberius @ 11:24 am: “Seems like you might be the only person on Earth that doesn’t know that you may not kill another country’s ambassador.”
I do not know how many people like Tiberius exist on the Earth, who would make such an idiotic, stupid charge.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
September 12th, 2012
11:47 am
You should have kept reading until at least Article 29, MarkV.
MarkV
September 12th, 2012
11:48 am
Del @11:39 am
“MarkV, How about your misinformed ignorant nonsense that you posted at 10:44 am.”
So why don’t you, Del, provide evidence that what I wrote was “misinformed, ignorant nonsense? That should not be so difficult to do. So I challenge you – put up or shut up.
As for the rest of your post, again, I could not care what I “appear” to you be doing, when it is just a lie. I have no dispute with what you write should be done.