In Remembrance of 9/11

[mrmitchell]

I hope that another skyscraper is rebuilded in it's place. Something taller... just to symbolize that terrorism will not work.

A guy in Harper's made a very good point that it should be rebuilt as residential towers--why? The current plan (rebuilt as one buttugly office building) has no prospective tenants. None. No one has reserved office space in the new building.

EDIT Doh the New Yorker not Harper's

[Grandpa Troll]

Originally posted by mrmitchell

A guy in Harper's made a very good point that it should be rebuilt as residential towers--why? The current plan (rebuilt as one buttugly office building) has no prospective tenants. None. No one has reserved office space in the new building.

EDIT Doh the New Yorker not Harper's

Just inserting my own insignifigant conjecture..but maybe people have'nt is because the building may end up being a symbol to terrorists as this?

A Taunt if you will which we dont need

[lord of the mark]

I was in bed. I was between jobs at the time, and had not yet gotten up to start my job search activities for the day. I turned on NPR and heard the incredible news that both towers had been hit, and the Pentagon as well. QOTM got back from dropping off POTM at school, and told me the WTC had been hit. I told her the Pentagon as well, to which she reacted with disbelief. Id heard a boom out the window - wondered if it was connected - turned out it was the fighters gone up to the patrol the airspace around DC. Called relatives in other cities to tell them we were fine.

Called up the school - POTM was in Jewish day school at the time. They were releasing kids to parents all day, while talking with the kids about what had happened. POTM was already gone - shed been picked up by the parents of her best friend (the one whose Mom is of Greek origin) and gone to their house, much closer to the school than ours. We contacted them and made arrangements to pick her up. talked with the parents a bit when we got there - best friends dad reported rumours of attacks on Jewish centers, etc (hes tends to be on the credible side, though even a less credible person couldnt rule anything out that day) POTM seemed ok, was always glad to play with her best friend. We went home and watched on TV. Not sure when in all this the towers fell. Felt overwhelmed. QOTM insisted that we go out and see what was happening at the Pentagon - by this time I395 was open into DC. We drove past and saw and smelled the acrid fumes - the fires werent quite out at that point. Once you were on 395 past the Pentagon, there was no exit open before DC so we drove in, and up 14th Street. The city looked bizarre - desolate as wed never seen it, with police and National Guards in front of every govt building. Reinforced the strangeness of that day.

We drove home. We lived in a hirise then. A bunch of folks gathered outside, to pray, to talk, and to sing. We sang God Bless America. White and black, native born and immigrant, we stood together. Including many neighbors we didnt know.

That weekend was Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, a time of prayer and reflection. There are seats on the alter (bimah - stage) that are normally for the rabbi, cantor, and honored members of the congregation. That day one seat was empty, draped with an American flag.

Several people we knew worked at the Pentagon. One in particular had worked in the section that was hit, and had a story of crawling through the wreckage, and then walking to the Synagogue (closer to the Pentagon than his home, and a natural place to reach out for help)

[Mrs. Tuberski]

Hey guys isnt it kind of unfair to disallow some of those folks that died in those towers as heros. Nobody knows which ones actually helped get other folks out and died themselves. In which case that would make them just as much of a hero as the firefighters and police officers. I am sure with the chaos some folks ran to save themselves, but I have also heard the stories of some survivors that said some folks in the building went out of their way to get them out of the building. Those folks are heros in my book.

[Grandpa Troll]

Originally posted by Mrs. Tuberski
Hey guys isnt it kind of unfair to disallow some of those folks that died in those towers as heros. Nobody knows which ones actually helped get other folks out and died themselves. In which case that would make them just as much of a hero as the firefighters and police officers. I am sure with the chaos some folks ran to save themselves, but I have also heard the stories of some survivors that said some folks in the building went out of their way to get them out of the building. Those folks are heros in my book.

Well Mrs.T, I didnt disallow anyone but merely stated we too often call people a Hero which may diminish heroic acts performed by many others.

I agree we dont know who so probably the PC thingey is to call all whom died heroes

I have no problems with this other than what you said "some" may not have and we will not know this side of eternit's resting place.

I mean its not like this case sets presidents for Hero Status

But I am still saddened by this set of events that unfolded 4 years ago

[Mrs. Tuberski]

NO GT you and sava have a valid point. One not to be dismissed, I Guess I was thinking differently. Id like to think if i had somebody perish that day that they didnt die climbing over other folks trying to get out but rather trying to restore a bit of order and help those that needed it with no real concern for my self

[Grandpa Troll]

Originally posted by Mrs. Tuberski
NO GT you and sava have a valid point. One not to be dismissed, I Guess I was thinking differently. Id like to think if i had somebody perish that day that they didnt die climbing over other folks trying to get out but rather trying to restore a bit of order and help those that needed it with no real concern for my self

BONIFIDE HERO

His name is Rick Rescorla

He was a Vietnam Era Platoon Commander as well

This would certainly be befittting of such a Title

Thanks Mrs.T for your posts