I have seen plenty of people wearing their red, white, and blue outfits. I've seen American flag headwraps. I've seen the ribbons, the makeshift memorials, and the recollections shown on CNN and elsewhere in lieu of actual news. Before I continue on my rant, I want to make absolutely clear that I believe we should never forget the sad events of 9/11/01. I believe we should never forget those who were lost on United Flight 93, or the Pentagon, or the World Trade Centers. I believe we should never forget their families and friends. The terrorist hijackings of 9/11/01 is the second-worst event I've seen during my lifetime, and I do not wish to demean this at all.
All that said, I believe the time has come for us as a nation to move on with our lives. Are we going to be mourning this event in such a maudlin manner ten years, fifteen, twenty, fifty, or even a hundred years hence? I know many of you have lost loved ones in the past, and it is in this sense that I mean to move on. I feel the best way to remember the victims is to remember their loss and to remember their families and friends, but not to engage in this maudlin, self-flagellating bullshit. The time for wearing sackcloth and ashes is over. The time to bring those responsible to justice, either in this life or by sending them to the next, is now and began the moment the first plane hit the building. Five years after Pearl Harbor, this nation did not have parades, or 24/7 coverage of nothing on the various television stations. The time has come for us to remember that bit of wisdom from our grandparents and stop giving the terrorists even this small bit of legitimacy by treating the anniversary of this horror as tantamount to a national holiday. We were hurt that terrible day. However, this nation was once great and has no excuse not to be again, and our resolve should be no less than it was five years ago, though this resolve should be tempered by wisdom, a wisdom I have not seen nearly as much as one might hope.
As for how I've observed the fifth anniversary of 9/11/01, well, I showered, went to work (wearing something that was NOT red, white, or blue), and basically treated it like a Monday. Last year, well, I was probably having a severe anxiety attack for reasons unrelated to the anniversary and everything to do with the tropics. Next year, who knows? However, my opinion on this is not likely to change.
3 comments:
Excellent points. The use of the word "maudlin" is very appropriate IMHO. Of course you know my opinions about the administration, and that I believe they would like us to go on feeling maudlin and flagellating ourselves for just about forever... and maybe they don't, but it sure seems like they do. I'd also love to see our government actually bring those responsible to justice. Like you, I did nothing out of the ordinary to observe September 11, even though it was labeled as "Patriots Day" on a couple of my page-a-day calendars...
It was not this way following Pearl Harbor.
Something has gone terribly wrong in America.
As much as I hate to admit it, I think our nation's critics have it partially right. We have become a bit soft as a nation, and more's the pity. This is merely one example of how we've gone wrong. For the rest, look no further than a trip to the grocery store, the kids you can hear in the parking lot screaming 30 metres away. It's not irreparable, but we can, should, and must become better. I fear we have tossed out the wisdom of the past in the process of taking out that which was wrong, and I'm not sure what needs to be done to fix it.
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