Remembering September 11, 2001

[Jim Oaks]

Here we are at the 10 year anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. I've been thinking about it lately because I keep hearing it mentioned on the radio.

On that day I was working as a State Trooper and was working day shift. I was on the range all day for weapons training and qualifying. I had walked in from the range and our district Captain and Lieutenants were watching the news, and bringing us up to date on what was going on. We were sent home after our shifts, but told that we were on standby. The patrol wanted to be able to mobilize us at a moments notice if they needed us. I would never get called in to do anymore than my regular shift, and was only able to put my name on a list of volunteers. It was frustrating watching the news and not being able to help.

I learned from that experience that when people need your help, you can't wait or depend on governing agencies to coordinate anything. If I could do it all over again, I would have taken vacation days and simply left for New York to help.

You never know though how close these things can come to home.

Jump ahead about 5 or 6 years and my new wife and I are having dinner with her uncle visiting us on vacation. He was a Lieutenant (just recently retired a year ago) with the New York City Sanitation Police. I new that he was there on 9/11, but never wanted to ask him about it. That night at dinner he started telling us his story and involvement.

Him and a Sergeant responded to the twin towers after the first plane hit. The Sergeant's wife was working in the tower that hadn't been hit yet. He was there though when the plane did hit. He was buried in the rubble and was initially on a list of people thought to have been lost. He spoke of the exeperience and how the day quickly turned to night from the cloud of debris. It's an amazing story, but not really mine to share.

Today, he has health problems with his lungs from being there. He watched another officer lose a bad to cancer from things he breathed in to his lungs at the twin towers.

When my wifes uncle eventully dies, his death is slated to be classified as a homicide because his lung problem is directly related to the 9/11 attack.

It make me wonder how many civilians in New York have similar lung issues.

There are so many victims between New York, The Pentagon and Flight 93. And countless families affected by those events.

I want all those families to know that - we haven't forgotten.

 

[explodan]

x2 and we will never forgive

 

[bilzy7]

I ran a mile with my son on my shoulders today. My little pride run.

 

[xr75er]

Remember always All gave some=Some gave All.

 

[Mr 85Ranger]

On 9-11-01 I was in the 7th grade sitting in my English class when the principal came over the intercom telling all the teachers to turn on their tv's. We all watched the news throughout the entire school day and were watching when the second plane hit the tower. Some people say it doesn't affect the younger kids like it does the older groups that understand what's happening. But I for one understood and realized what was happening and it still is a burden on me realizing how many lives were lost on this day and how many children lost parent(s) and how many husbands lost a wife or vise versa. My heart goes out to all the families and friends who have lost a loved one on this day. 9-11-01 will ALWAYS be remembered in my family. My dad has been a firefighter for 20+yrs now and I respect everything he does for his job and the community.

 

[CHKNFKR]

On 9-11-01 I was in the 7th grade sitting in my English class when the principal came over the intercom telling all the teachers to turn on their tv's. We all watched the news throughout the entire school day and were watching when the second plane hit the tower. Some people say it doesn't affect the younger kids like it does the older groups that understand what's happening. But I for one understood and realized what was happening and it still is a burden on me realizing how many lives were lost on this day and how many children lost parent(s) and how many husbands lost a wife or vise versa. My heart goes out to all the families and friends who have lost a loved one on this day. 9-11-01 will ALWAYS be remembered in my family. My dad has been a firefighter for 20+yrs now and I respect everything he does for his job and the community.

8th grade math. My school did the opposite. They didn't want it to distract us from our school work. Went to social studies/history between the two hits. The teacher turned on the tv and told us to watch very closely, the events unfolding would change our lives unlike no other single event in history. She was right. 4 years later i raised my right hand and did my part.

 

[NMB2]

I was at home getting ready to go to school when I heard my mom crying and my dad yelling something. They came out and told us what happened and I watched it on TV before I went to school. I remember watching the second tower get hit, and just thinking.... How is this possible? Sept 11 2008 rolled around and I was watching the TV specials on it and it affected me so much that year that I called my dad and told him I was joining the army, how should I go about it (he is a retired 1SG) and I enlisted the following week.

 

[nuclassic]

It was the day before I graduated basic training in the Army. They gathered us in the day room to show us what was going on. A whole lot of emotions went through my mind as did everyone. If only the love and patriotism caused by such acts never wavered, we'd have a utopia.

 

[MrE_Powers]

i was just waking up and the tv was left on by my wife and the first plane hit. i instantly thought of the plane accident in 1940s when a army bomber hit the empire state building. took a shower and that is when the 2nd plane hit i woke my wife up and she groused i woke her. i then finished getting ready for work and rode my bike that day. we almost did nothing at work that day because we listened to the radio all day to the news.

i remembered back to 2000 to the Uss cole attack and the previous attacks during my ride to work and i knew in my gut that the same group was involved.

 

[RollinWOT]

10 years have gone by and it feels like only yesterday. I may have never served in our military, but I do my part to support those who keep us free and protected. Some people seem to not care any more, some say it's a conspiracy, but no matter what, we as a people have become stronger as a whole. Never forget the lives lost by innocents and the lives lost by those who protect us and selflessly gave their lives to help others on that day on 9/11.

 

[doorgunner]

edited by doorgunner

Here we are at the 10 year anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. I've been thinking about it lately because I keep hearing it mentioned on the radio.

It was frustrating.......not being able to help.

I learned from that experience that when people need your help, you can't wait or depend on governing agencies to coordinate anything.

You never know though how close these things can come to home.


When my wifes uncle eventully dies, his death is slated to be classified as a homicide because his lung problem is directly related to the 9/11 attack.

It make me wonder how many civilians in New York have similar lung issues.

There are so many victims between New York, The Pentagon and Flight 93. And countless families affected by those events.

I want all those families to know that - we haven't forgotten.

It's so sad but true--the things you have learned from being a "Civilian Soldier/Trooper"...you see things thru "different eyes" than most people. I did a study of all the wars that the United States has been in, and found out that in EVERY war--within a few years of the war's ending, AS MANY CIVILIANS end up dying from wounds(complications) as soldiers who were in actual combat. That's an amazing/scarey/frightening fact to realize that innocent people who never carried a weapon seem to die at the same rate as combat troops!

In the case of 9/11, the facts seem to be REVERSED! 3,000 civilians gave their lives in the initial attack (as opposed to 3,000 combat troops). And now, 6,000+ combat troops have died in the years after the 9/11 attack(double the "normal casualty rate-post war).

As with any "facts", these seem cold and distant from what we feel about 9/11.



So, I'll quote you again............

I want all those families to know that - we haven't forgotten.

 

[RatDog8o8]

I woke up that morning....Tuesday....and clicked the TV onto the Spanish channel to see who was on (hot newscaster). I saw this footage of the events, and thought they were showing some movie clip. Then when I fully woke up, I realized it was all too real. All the rest of the day, I sat there and watched (English version). I have my own personal opinions as to what we (our country) should have done, but I won't post them here.

I can still see the images in my mind.

 

[wiesket]

I recall very vividly when that happened. I was cooking breakfast and my youngest daughter came running out of her bedroom and told me to turn on the tv. I almost dropped the frying pan, and can not repeat my vocal declarations(too colorfull). I kept going from the kitchen to the living room to watch and keep updated as to what was happening. When they showed the second plane hitting the tower I thought I was gonna loose a few colling plugs. After breakfast, got cleaned up and went to work, where basically nothing was accomplished all day. Had the tv's on and watched. Very sad day indeed. Had I been a few years younger I would have gone back on active duty, I was that mad. Being close to Dearborn, Mi it was almost funny that we had no customers come in the store of Arabic decent that day. Don't know if I could have dealt with them.

What did dissapoint me about the 10th anniversary was that no one suggested that everyone across our great nation fly "OLD GLORY" like we did the friday after the attack. I always have a flag displayed in front of my house, but would have been great to have had it repeated again.

 

[straycat]

I would still like to know why we never went after Saudi Arabia….they are the ones that were flying the planes (except for one who was not a Saudi). Our beloved idiot President Bush new about it and let his Saudi ‘brothers’ out of the country.


'Nuff said.

 

[superdave1984]

I was at work. Installing carpet in some lady's house. She started screaming and I went downstairs to see what happened. She was in tears and hugged me. It was a surreal day to say the least. That Sunday, our pastor said something that I had not thought of in my anger over the attack. He said (and I paraphrase) "Lord, we pray for those responsible for these attacks. That they may have their eyes and hearts opened and see the grace You give. That they may understand that what they do is not Your work, but their own. Forgive them Lord. Give them grace. Give us peace."