[Powderworks] (NMOC) Re: These should not be forgotten years
Tony D'Astolfo
tonyis@the-loo.com
Thu, 12 Sep 2002 14:11:49 -0400
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Lovely email Kate and I too sat and watched the horror unfold on TV in =
my office next to Dulles Airport and had co-workers who had family in =
the Towers.=20
After speaking to my Grandfather on Sept. 11 he said it reminded him =
exactly of what happened on Dec. 7. Just because it was a Navy base =
didn't mean it was there for the picking. Please don't forget about the =
189 individuals who perished at the Pentagon, or were they not a part of =
this tragedy because they were in a building that protects our freedoms =
and rights in this country as well as assists with the same in others =
around the world.
"own up to the fact that US actions in the world create the conditions =
which breed and nurture this evil "
Please. You may as well be one of these folks that say we brought this =
on ourselves and deserve it.=20
If we don't act now, which 'Western' country is next on their list. I =
believe we need to rid the world of this terrorist mess and not sit back =
and let it regain momentum. Please don't think for a minute this threat =
is just going to go away, they have not been satiated by their cowardly =
attack on our country.
=20
Tony
----- Original Message -----=20
From: Kate Adams=20
To: powderworks@cs.colorado.edu=20
Sent: Thursday, September 12, 2002 12:51 PM
Subject: Re: [Powderworks] Re: These should not be forgotten years =
(NMOC)
Tribe and Tony and all others too,
It is far too easy to sit offshore and smirk at us silly Americans for =
being upset a whole year later about this. It is much too easy to trot =
out a whole catalog of "bigger" tragedies to buttress sneering slights. =
It is also too easy to make it into a broad scale act of war by some =
entity-to-be-defined, when it was simply a mass-murder of civilians by =
terrorists. (btw, most casualties at Pearl Harbor were on warships or at =
the base, not civilians. There are still mortar rounds buried in the =
back wall of the hangars at Hickam AFB and unrepaired stucco on the =
barracks).
Fact is, if you and stood mute and helpless as you witnessed this with =
your coworkers, if you were called in to calm and console a hysterical =
administrator with five close relatives in those buildings, if your =
friends lost brothers, if your kid's friends lost fathers, if your =
relatives lost good friends, ... or if you lost someone close to you =
then it is one of the biggest and nastiest things to ever happen no =
matter what anyone says. I don't live in NYC, but I have travelled =
there, walked that observation deck, slept in that downed hotel on the =
site, parked my car in that garage, swam in the rooftop pool at that =
former hotel. If it were May 25 and not September 11, it could have =
been me and my brother jumping off together, hopelessly trapped. Or =
not, if we had stopped for coffee first.
And it would have been much worse had a nuclear plant been hit and =
collapsed, rendering all land in a 35-50 mile radius uninhabitable. Or =
a chemical factory in densely populated New Jersey, or any number of far =
dirtier and less symbolic targets. The potential to use an airplane for =
a weapon of mass destruction is what scares the hell out of me. =20
I'm getting really tired of both ends of this ... the "not such a big =
deal" auto-sneering at Americans and the "its an act of war" end of it =
by Americans. It is a very big deal to so many of us on this list =
simply because it is a very personal tragedy for many of us. This =
wasn't armchair TV consumption of far-off atrocity. We simply cannot =
give it a comparative historical tragedy rating on the horrendous =
atrocity scale with decades of perspective. This was real-life =
consumption of our friends and families and that is what makes it loom =
so huge in our lives. =20
We Americans do now need to cool our heads and get perspective and =
push for rational policy in the wake of September 11, 2001, yet all the =
derisive and detached minimization by those far removed from all of it =
ain't gonna make that happen. All the exhortations to compare it to =
"much greater evils" doesn't help if you bore personal witness to one =
and not the other. For our part we Americans need to call it what it is =
- a mass-murder by former CIA darlings - and own up to the fact that US =
actions in the world create the conditions which breed and nurture this =
evil and work to bring on the changes that keep it from happening anew =
in another twenty years. (a very good column in the Boston Globe spells =
the need to join the world rather tactfully: =
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/254/oped/A_nation_changed_and_unchanged=
+.shtml).=20
=20
As the bumper sticker goes... if you want peace, work for justice. =
But forgive us if we lack perspective when we and our friends and family =
are grieving.
-Kate
At 09:37 PM 9/12/02 +1000, Tribe Goddard wrote:
Hiroshima.
=20
I'm aware that terrible cataclysms, committed by human hands, have =
occurred in other places and times. But never quite like this, I don't =
think.
*******************************************************
Kate Adams
Gradual Student
UMass Lowell
*******************************************************
Remember your childhood
Remember the journey
Hope is what you say and do
-Midnight Oil=20
(Minutes to Midnight)
*******************************************************
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<DIV><FONT face=3DVerdana size=3D2> Lovely email Kate and I too sat =
and watched=20
the horror unfold on TV in my office next to Dulles Airport and had =
co-workers=20
who had family in the Towers. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DVerdana size=3D2> After speaking to my =
Grandfather on Sept.=20
11 he said it reminded him exactly of what happened on Dec. 7. Just =
because it=20
was a Navy base didn't mean it was there for the picking. Please =
don't=20
forget about the 189 individuals who perished at the Pentagon, or were =
they not=20
a part of this tragedy because they were in a building that =
protects our=20
freedoms and rights in this country as well as assists with the same in =
others=20
around the world.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DVerdana size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DVerdana size=3D2>"<FONT face=3D"Times New Roman" =
size=3D3>own up to=20
the fact that US actions in the world create the conditions which breed =
and=20
nurture this evil "</FONT></FONT></DIV>
<DIV> <FONT face=3DVerdana size=3D2>Please. You may as well be one =
of these=20
folks that say we brought this on ourselves and deserve it. =
</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DVerdana size=3D2></FONT><FONT face=3DVerdana=20
size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DVerdana size=3D2> If we don't act now, =
which 'Western'=20
country is next on their list. I believe we need to rid the =
world of=20
this terrorist mess and not sit back and let it regain momentum. Please =
don't=20
think for a minute this threat is just going to go away, they have not =
been=20
satiated by their cowardly attack on our country.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DVerdana size=3D2> </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DVerdana size=3D2>Tony</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DVerdana size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE dir=3Dltr=20
style=3D"PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; =
BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV=20
style=3D"BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: =
black"><B>From:</B>=20
<A title=3Dkate@dnki.net href=3D"mailto:kate@dnki.net">Kate Adams</A> =
</DIV>
<DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A =
title=3Dpowderworks@cs.colorado.edu=20
=
href=3D"mailto:powderworks@cs.colorado.edu">powderworks@cs.colorado.edu</=
A>=20
</DIV>
<DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Thursday, September 12, =
2002 12:51=20
PM</DIV>
<DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: [Powderworks] Re: =
These=20
should not be forgotten years (NMOC)</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>Tribe and Tony and all others too,<BR><BR>It is far too =
easy to=20
sit offshore and smirk at us silly Americans for being upset a whole =
year=20
later about this. It is much too easy to trot out a whole =
catalog of=20
"bigger" tragedies to buttress sneering slights. It is also too =
easy to=20
make it into a broad scale act of war by some entity-to-be-defined, =
when it=20
was simply a mass-murder of civilians by terrorists. (btw, most =
casualties at=20
Pearl Harbor were on warships or at the base, not civilians. =
There are=20
still mortar rounds buried in the back wall of the hangars at Hickam =
AFB and=20
unrepaired stucco on the barracks).<BR><BR>Fact is, if you and stood =
mute and=20
helpless as you witnessed this with your coworkers, if you were called =
in to=20
calm and console a hysterical administrator with five close relatives =
in those=20
buildings, if your friends lost brothers, if your kid's friends lost =
fathers,=20
if your relatives lost good friends, ... or if you lost someone close =
to you=20
then it is one of the biggest and nastiest things to ever happen no =
matter=20
what anyone says. I don't live in NYC, but I have travelled =
there,=20
walked that observation deck, slept in that downed hotel on the site, =
parked=20
my car in that garage, swam in the rooftop pool at that former =
hotel. If=20
it were May 25 and not September 11, it could have been me and my =
brother=20
jumping off together, hopelessly trapped. Or not, if we had =
stopped for=20
coffee first.<BR><BR>And it would have been much worse had a nuclear =
plant=20
been hit and collapsed, rendering all land in a 35-50 mile radius=20
uninhabitable. Or a chemical factory in densely populated New =
Jersey, or=20
any number of far dirtier and less symbolic targets. The =
potential to=20
use an airplane for a weapon of mass destruction is what scares the =
hell out=20
of me. <BR><BR>I'm getting really tired of both ends of this ... =
the=20
"not such a big deal" auto-sneering at Americans and the "its an act =
of war"=20
end of it by Americans. It is a very big deal to so many of us =
on this=20
list simply because it is a very personal tragedy for many of =
us. =20
This wasn't armchair TV consumption of far-off atrocity. We =
simply=20
cannot give it a comparative historical tragedy rating on the =
horrendous=20
atrocity scale with decades of perspective. This was real-life=20
consumption of our friends and families and that is what makes it loom =
so huge=20
in our lives. <BR><BR>We Americans do now need to cool our heads =
and get=20
perspective and push for rational policy in the wake of September 11, =
2001,=20
yet all the derisive and detached minimization by those far removed =
from all=20
of it ain't gonna make that happen. All the exhortations to =
compare it=20
to "much greater evils" doesn't help if you bore personal witness to =
one and=20
not the other. For our part we Americans need to call it what it =
is - a=20
mass-murder by former CIA darlings - and own up to the fact that US =
actions in=20
the world create the conditions which breed and nurture this evil and =
work to=20
bring on the changes that keep it from happening anew in another =
twenty=20
years. (a very good column in the Boston Globe spells the need =
to join=20
the world rather tactfully:=20
=
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/254/oped/A_nation_changed_and_unchanged=
+.shtml).=20
<BR> <BR>As the bumper sticker goes... if you want peace, work =
for=20
justice. But forgive us if we lack perspective when we and our =
friends=20
and family are grieving.<BR><BR>-Kate<BR><BR>At 09:37 PM 9/12/02 =
+1000, Tribe=20
Goddard wrote:<BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE class=3Dcite cite=3D"" type=3D"cite"><FONT face=3Darial=20
size=3D2>Hiroshima.</FONT><BR> <BR><FONT face=3Darial =
size=3D2>I'm aware that=20
terrible cataclysms, committed by human hands, have occurred in =
other places=20
and times. But never quite like this, I don't =
think.</BLOCKQUOTE><X-SIGSEP>
=
<P></X-SIGSEP>*******************************************************<BR>=
Kate=20
Adams<BR>Gradual Student<BR>UMass=20
=
Lowell<BR>*******************************************************<BR>Reme=
mber=20
your childhood<BR>Remember the journey<BR>Hope is what you say and=20
=
do<BR><X-TAB> </X-TAB>-Mid=
night=20
Oil=20
=
<BR><X-TAB> </X-TAB>(Minut=
es to=20
=
Midnight)<BR>*******************************************************<BR><=
/FONT></P></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>
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