On 9/11
September 11, 2002
By Democratic Underground Readers

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I was at work at the time, when my cube-mate told me that terrorists had just crashed planes into the World Trade Center towers. At first, I thought he was blowing smoke. "No way," I said. Then I turned on the radio.

Right about then, my wife called. She was in Germany visiting her mother. I thought she was going to talk about what had just happened in Manhattan, but it became clear that she didn't know what was going on. "Turn on the TV," I said. By this time, images of the burning towers were all over European television.

A TV was set up in one of the conference rooms in our building. Several of us went down to watch the Fox News feed, which toggled between live coverage and the horrible tape of the plane hitting the second tower. As the towers burned, I speculated (to myself) that if this goes on much longer, the building might be unsalvagable and would have to be razed. Just about then, the first tower fell. A co-worker couldn't believe what she just saw, and asked me what had just happened. "The building is...gone," I said.

At about twelve-thirty, we were told to go home for the day. I had this sickening feeling in my stomach by this time, and I couldn't bear to listen to any more news about the World Trade Center, so I turned the radio off and slowly drove home. It was a beautiful day in Upstate New York, but as I drove, I wondered what things would be like a year from now, or two years from now. By the time I got to my driveway, I had completely lost it.

Our next-door neighbors already had their flag out. After bawling in my car for what seemed like an eternity, I went inside the house and got my own flag out and set it up, just like I would on Independence Day.

Yesterday, we went to church, as we've been doing more frequently than we used to, and this week's service was dedicated to the 9/11 victims, the firefighters and policemen, and our servicemen and women serving overseas. My wife, remembering where she was when all of this happened, wondering when or if she would be able to fly home, remembering how devastated everyone was when she was supposed to be on vacation, had to leave the church twice during the service to regain her composure. It hasn't gone away, and I'm not sure it ever will.

— way2muchsense

September 11 was a blur, but one thing stuck out at the time, and it still makes me mad today:

Even before the towers collapsed, and long before anyone had any real perspective on the tragedy, "experts," pundits and men-on-the-street began talking about how we would have to give up some of our freedoms. They couldn't articulate what those freedoms might be, but they were sure we had to give them up. It made me ill. I could not fathom the mindset which, when faced with a national tragedy, immediately declared we must give up freedom. It was as though they had been lying awake at night, worried about all these excess freedoms and wondering how to get rid of some of them for our own good.

For the rest of my life, anyone who calls for giving up freedom in exchange for security will sound like a fascist to me. We give up our freedoms for the security of people who already have plenty of both. It's a sucker's deal.

— Jeff Osborne

One year later I am sicker and sadder than when I witnessed the towers crumbling, because now I'm witnessing my civil liberties and my democracy crumbling as well. I remember thinking that this is a rare and a powerful opportunity to really test ourselves. A time to reconsider our priorities and to recognize the fleeting and tenuous nature of life as we know it. Unfortunately, too many people used the opportunity to achieve personal goals, be it smoke and mirrors to hide blatant government abuse, or media graverobbers preying on the shock of the masses by promoting infotainment and the personal agendas of politicians and the corporate world - one and the same these days.

I'm grateful for my personal reawakening and my further comittment to freedom and integrity. I'm grateful for my life and the promise it holds.

— D. Cooper

As a retiree with rheumatoid arthritis, my days nearly always start the same way. Because of pain, I remain in bed until around 9 AM, get up, get a cup of coffee, then sit down to watch one of the news channels. Sept. 11, 2001 began like this. When I turned on the TV, the first plane had already hit. Reporters weren't saying what kind of plane, and I assumed it was probably a Cessna or Piper Cub. Needless to say, I was stunned. Soon thereafter, it was reported that the plane was a 747. Then a second plane hit the other tower.

Like everyone else, my first reaction was horror and disbelief. I clearly remember thinking "Why wasn't this prevented?!" I continued watching TV, switching from one channel to another.

No matter how long I live, whenever I hear the words "World Trade Center" I'll be haunted by those horrifying images of people jumping to their deaths from the towers. As the first tower collapsed, I moaned as tears began streaming down my face. Then the second tower collapsed, and I screamed "Nooooooo!"

For the remainder of that day I continued watching TV, chilled by the sound of those chirping devices indicating many firemen were down and not moving. Still watching with tear filled eyes. I watched until 2 AM the next morning. I had reached the point of emotional exhaustion hours before, but was unable to remain up any longer, so went to bed. I slept fitfully that night, waking frequently.

The next morning I awakened a couple of hours earlier than usual, and my first thought was "It wasn't a nightmare; it was real." The afternoon of 9/12 I had some errands to run, and as soon as I got in my car, I began scanning through radio stations until I found one that was talking about what was going on in New York City. Soon after I began listening, the announcer reported that the Mossad had warned our govt. two weeks before the 11th that Al Qaeda planned an imminent attack on this country. I knew at that moment that something was terribly wrong.

When I got home, I went online and began a search to discover Bush crimes - a search which has yielded much and continues. There can be no closure to 9/11 for me until the truth is known to everyone in this country.

— Brenda Ryan

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