RE: In Memoriam. September 11

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RE: In Memoriam. September 11 - 9/11/2009 3:18:42 PM

Arpig

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I was teaching networking at a school run by Muslims, with a 95+% Muslim student body. I was listening to the radio before heading to work when I heard about the first plane...at that time they still didn't have any details. I turned on the TV and was spell-bound. I called the school and they told me classes were cancelled...I watched most of the day.

The next day, in class, rather than teach the planned lesson we discussed what had happened and what it meant. None of my students in any way supported the acts, and they were scared, genuinely scared of what would happen next. They feared some sort of backlash, they feared anti-Muslim riots or pogroms....they were really scared. We talked about what had happened and how it would affect their lives, about their fears for the future, both immediate and long term. It was eye opening to say the least. The guy who ran the school (some sort of religious leader in the local community) arranged to hold a special prayer session to pray for those killed by the terrorists. I never heard one word of support for the terrorists, not a peep. In fact just the opposite, they were mad as Hell at them, you'd have thought they had been the target, and in a way they were...it was them who would have to live with the mistrust and the hatred due to no fault of their own.

We discussed the attacks and the War on terror on several occasions afterwards as well, we did it pretty regularly during our lunch breaks...they seemed to welcome the chance to talk openly about how it was affecting them. I remember one student, an Afghani who had fled the Taliban...man was he ever happy when the US went into Afghanistan, saying that all Canadian Muslims now had be perfect Canadians, better Canadians than others. They had to make sure their patriotism was openly displayed and reinforced. He was right, but it made me sad that these people whom I called friends, who had never done anything to hurt anybody were now forced to prove themselves daily for the foreseeable future. 9/11 didn't really impact Canada that much, yes some of those killed were Canadians or friends/family of Canadians, but not really that many...but a whole segment of innocent Canadians (and Americans for that matter) had their lives turned upside down, their loyalty and trustworthiness put to the question....they had to endure the angry stares and angrier words, the hurtful epithets, the threats, implicit and explicit, to have their children bullied and intimidated at school and in their neighbourhoods.

The Muslims of Canada were far more affected by 9/11 than were the non-Muslims of Canada, they are a group whose suffering as a result of 9/11 is often overlooked, and I was glad to be able to see it from their perspective.

< Message edited by Arpig -- 9/11/2009 3:21:18 PM >

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RE: In Memoriam. September 11 - 9/12/2009 4:39:38 AM

Grofast

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was making a coffee stop between deliveries when i saw the report and first pictures of the first plane was sure it had been an accident. was making a delivery when the second plane hit. Tried to continue the day but my final drop offs were at LAX and i was turned away. Could not watch TV because i knew that nothing would be the same. I lived in the flight path of Long Beach Airport at the time that day did not bother me as much as the total silence durring the following week of grounded flights. Spent every moment i could with my,now exwife and with a group of close friends and having the only land line phone in our apartment complex it was busy constantly as we were all contacting family.
I had grown up a military brat dad was stationed in germeny for quite a few years we were there when the USAFE head quarters building on Ramstien was blown up and when they tried to kill an USAF officer in an ambush. I felt vunrable, scared and at the same time wanted vengence for our murdered people. But, in the time that has passed i have come to realize that that day America was attacked has been a catalist for change a lazy peole have finally realized to be safe you cannot be afraid to kill. People say that the wars in afganistan and iraq were not nessisary for our security and that our government cannot keep us safe but have you noticed that ever since we got that four part wake up call they have not hit us at home again. And i prey every day that they wont again

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RE: In Memoriam. September 11 - 9/12/2009 4:42:47 AM

sirsholly

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quote:

ORIGINAL: GoddessImaginos

quote:

ORIGINAL: mugwump

My heart is with anyone who lost somebody that day. x

Ditto that, sincerely.

me too.

And actually...we all lost something that day. Our innocence? Trust?

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RE: In Memoriam. September 11 - 9/12/2009 4:48:22 AM

sirsholly

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i was a Red Cross member at that time. The call came in to be ready to go to New York. Our group was Rescue only (not recovery, which is recovery of the bodies). We all gathered at the meeting site, bags packed and waiting for the word to go. One of the administrators came in and said "Thank you, but your services are not needed." We all knew what that meant, and there was dead silence in a room of over a hundred people.

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RE: In Memoriam. September 11 - 9/12/2009 7:26:19 AM

rulemylife

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Grofast

...in the time that has passed i have come to realize that that day America was attacked has been a catalist for change a lazy peole have finally realized to be safe you cannot be afraid to kill. People say that the wars in afganistan and iraq were not nessisary for our security and that our government cannot keep us safe but have you noticed that ever since we got that four part wake up call they have not hit us at home again. And i prey every day that they wont again

Have you noticed that maybe this is not the time or thread for a political debate?

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RE: In Memoriam. September 11 - 9/12/2009 7:57:43 AM

TheHeretic

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quote:

ORIGINAL: rulemylife
Have you noticed that maybe this is not the time or thread for a political debate?

So why are you spinning an honest sentiment into something political??? Why must you try to redefine someone's anger???

I had the West Coast experience. Both towers were burning by the time the radio reports got me to a TV, and both had fallen before I left for work. The events of that morning still make me angry, the days that followed still leave me deeply cynical.

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RE: In Memoriam. September 11 - 9/12/2009 11:31:01 AM

rulemylife

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quote:

ORIGINAL: TheHeretic

quote:

ORIGINAL: rulemylife
Have you noticed that maybe this is not the time or thread for a political debate?

So why are you spinning an honest sentiment into something political??? Why must you try to redefine someone's anger???

I had the West Coast experience. Both towers were burning by the time the radio reports got me to a TV, and both had fallen before I left for work. The events of that morning still make me angry, the days that followed still leave me deeply cynical.

If you want to have this discussion start a fucking thread about it and I promise you I won't be shy.

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RE: In Memoriam. September 11 - 9/12/2009 12:10:37 PM

GreedyTop

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I was at a friends house, in CA. He called me over to the TV... we both thought it was a War of the Worlds kind of thing at first. When we realized that it was REAL.. all we could do was watch.. I couldn't stop crying. I still have a really rough time watching footage of the second plane hitting the tower.
I had a friend who was NYPD, in Queens. I knew the phones would be useless.. but the next day I called and left a message for him to please PLEASE call and let me know he was ok. It was a week before I heard from him....

Family and friends in the NYC area, Godmother in Greenwich Village. Not sure of the geography of the city, I got panicky when I couldnt reach her. Later, I found out that Greenwich Village was far enough away to not have been physically touched by the damage, and the reason I couldnt reach her was because she'd already gone to work.

My heart still cries for those who died, and those that were affected by the event.

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RE: In Memoriam. September 11 - 9/12/2009 12:57:15 PM

DomImus

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quote:

ORIGINAL: rulemylife
If you want to have this discussion start a fucking thread about it and I promise you I won't be shy.

It's just a shame that we can't remember 9/11 and expect everyone to be civil and mature.

We were still asleep. My mother in law called and woke us and told us to turn the tv on. The south tower had already been hit and they were showing replays of that. I watched as the towers fell and listened to reports of the planes at the Pentagon and Shanksville. I watched all day until I had to get ready for the evening work shift.

I remember seeing a show about 9/11 that used footage that a French film crew was shooting of a documentary they were making about a rookie FDNY firefighter. They were following him every day and filming. That morning his squad or whatever went out on a gas leak alarm that turned out to be a false alarm. It put them in the perfect vantage point in that cavernous city to be the only videoed account of the first plane hitting the north tower. I know it was just a coincidence but it took me a while to reconcile and accept that coincidence.

I recorded about six hours of last nights 9/11 broadcasts on the History Channel. There were an amazing number of heroes that day.

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