6 years have passed since that vicious attack on September 11, 2001. One of the few events in my personal life that have been indelibly etched in my memory, in mind-numbing detail. I remember exactly where I was...the exact moment that I, in concert with most of the civilized world, and in total disbelief, witnessed that horrendous massacre executed in the name of the god of a so-called religion of peace. Almost 3,000 people gone, in one fell swoop. Most people mourned, others celebrated. It was that day the lines were drawn in the proverbial sand.
Unfortunately, the longer time passes, the further it seems to recede from people's minds and those lines become faded for many. Some cross over to the other side, in spite of the continuing violence in the name of Islam and the increasing demands of an intolerant religious ideology. And yet for others, for those able to see the larger picture, that violence has only served to strengthen their resolve to combat the cancer that is conservative Islam. So they hold "anti-Islamisation" demonstrations in places like Brussels, in spite of being banned by the mayor. Others blog about the problem, in spite of threats and lawsuits. But we have to do what we can, to make sure that the world remains free!
Although we left Kaua'i last night, September 10, we actually arrived on September 11, and it was quite a sobering thought to think that so many people died on this same day, 6 years ago, on their way somewhere. Life has changed, forever, since that day. Air travel is a major pain, thanks to Islamist terrorists. They have forced us to change our flying habits, and to suspect everyone who looks like a Muslim or Middle Eastern. There happened to be 2 women in veils on our flight, 1 looked south asian the other looked mid-western, and yet I couldn't help but wonder. I wondered if they might be terrorists, I wondered what would possess them to fly on September 11, and I wondered what I would do if they tried anything. Until I drifted off to sleep, and dreamed about crash landing. Twice.
12 comments:
Hi Incog
Glad to have you back.
I had forgotten about the part how air travel has changed because of the terrorists.
Those women really were brave to try and travel(with veils) on Sept 11 !
Great post
yes incog welcome back and glad all is well. and tan by now? as poo said the woman on board were either brave or obstinate... it must have been "moving" flying on the eleventh... did many fellow passengers talk about it, or was preferred not to be discussed?
Good to see you're back! It's perfectly normal to be alert and questioning these days. We have to look out for ourselves and the others with us.
That is rough. I was driving down I-95 at about 9:30 in the morning when it hit me that it was six years ago on a Tuesday like this that the whole world changed. Glad to hear that you're back safe.
There is a line from one of my favorite books, "Dune" by Frank Herbert -- "fear is the mind killer."
We can't allow fear to govern our thoughts, our actions, or our country. Fear is the tool of manipulators. I am a child of The King, what have I to fear?
FRASY: Thank you.. :-) nice to be back, though the laid back Hawaii thing was quite lovely. Yeah, travel has totally changed, and I really resent it. Had to pack all the jams etc. cos they were over the 2 oz limit. Was lucky my bag weighed exactly 50 lbs. But not being able to take that stuff on board truly stinks. Thank you terrorists.
PATJ: And thank you! not much tan.. not the sunbathing type. no patience. sis is toasty brown, though. and who knows what the women were, but it was interesting. and yeah, it *was* moving to be flying on the 11th. No-one spoke of it, though I thought the pilots might mention something about a moment of silence.. but nothing. Probably in deference to the 2 women. I caan just imagine their outrage.
KAREN: thank you. I hate being that way, but it's our way of life, these days. sadly.
GW: Good to see you back in the blog world, ODP. Had forgotten it was a Tuesday.
PAN: It definitely is, Pan. The root of all our troubles. and you're absolutely right. God can't work through fear and I have to remind myself that God is always in control, so... :-)
I not only remember it, but when it happened. It brought back to memory when I was in the center of a terrorist bombing in Frankfurt Germany. I have never been the same. I realized how fortunate I was to survive then, and the thing is this, It has ALWAYS been a factor in the world, we ignored it for well over 25 to 30 years, I'm not surprised that people continue to ignore it when it has become all to real on our soil.
Hey Jon, that must have been horrific. I've just witnessed from afar and know how that affected me. I can't even imagine how that must have affected you and others who have witnessed terror first hand. I guess it's easier to bury heads in the sand then deal with the actual evil.
DD2: Hey there.. not sure why you removed the comment, but thanks..:-)
Incog-Welcome back! Hope you're rested and tanned (at least rested) and ready to go. You were missed.
The comment from the gentleman who had been in a bombing in Germany brought out the fact - terrorism has always been here. It may have had different faces throughout the years, but always present. We were naive here in the U.S. by believing it would not happen on our own soil.
Fear is a thief. It steals our ability to act, to fight or just to stand. God is my shield - whom shall I fear?!
Hey Strawb... thanks.. not tanned or really rested. we did a lot of things their, and in the meantime trying to get as much of the script memorized for the next gig. so mind is a wee bit fried.
Sadly, it has been around for decades though not as severe a problem. and we are still naive to think it won't happen again.
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