Eminent Domain Stuff
New London Update (2/24/06)
Bad NLDC!
Coverage of the Rally at New London's City Hall (w/ pics)
Wednesday, May 19, 2004
Do You Remember?
Of course you do. Who could forget? I just caught Hannity and Colmes on Fox talking with Mayor Giuliani about his testimony before the 9/11 Commission. Much of the discussion was about the general tendency to want to assign blame with 20/20 hindsight. Nothing bothers me more…and most especially where this horrible event is concerned.
The arrogance, well after the fact, of judging decisions made in the blinding dust of the moment is inexcusable. Unfortunately, it is all too easy to get caught up in the blame game. If you want to point fingers at the politicians, be my guest…just be fair. But the face of any belly-crawling-scum will certainly deserve to find my willing and able fist if it dare disparage the firefighters or policemen who risked and gave their lives in the service of others.
With all the noise being generated with this ‘independent’ commission, I think we all could use some clarity. So…
Let us set aside all the political bickering to reflect, for a brief moment, on that terrible day. My feeble attempt at expressing my true, visceral, feelings on that day is below. I know there is no way that mere words could possibly convey the enormity of that day and how it impacted me…and continues to. So my only hope is that my words will elicit in you your own very personal and unique feelings on 9/11/01. I know most of them were painful…especially for any who lost a loved one, friend, etc. I apologize in advance if I cause any pain. I only do this here because it saddens me greatly that so many seem to have forgotten.
-----
Do you remember?
All memories fade with time, some more than others. This one, however, will never leave me.
We were sitting in the 1st year medical lecture hall. Cell phones rang, irritating but nothing out of the ordinary. A few students listened to their phones after a second ring…and walked out of the room. As the 8am lecture was drawing to a close the always-gruff Dr. G walked to the front of the class. He took a second, looking at the podium. Then he looked out at the class. The words hit me as his look had its effect, “One of the World Trade Center towers in New York City is on fire. It appears to not be an accident. It appears that we have been attacked. Class is dismissed. Go home.”
I have no memory of the short drive to my friend’s apartment. We sat and watched. Absolute disbelief and stunned silence cast a pall over the room. With our over-connected, real-time, world…I saw with my own eyes…the second plane hit the Tower. With that, all suggestions of accident were abandoned and we knew…
We sat and watched. The towers, one and then the other, imploded and fell straight down to the ground. We saw tiny dots falling…people choosing to jump to their deaths rather than sit in a doomed building.
Scenes bounced up and down as cameramen risked their lives trying to capture and transmit images of firefighters and policemen risking their own lives while ensuring the survival of as many as possible.
I sat many miles from The City. Never before had I felt so useless. Never before had every ounce of my being wanted to reach out and help. Never before had I been so grateful to be safe, and to know that my family was also.
Yet somehow, in the midst of watching my Countrymen engulfed by such horror…
Never before had I wanted so badly be in The City, to be a part of that groundswell of NYC comradery…
Never before had I wanted so badly to be a New Yorker.
-----
Do You Remember?
Update:
Here's more on the Giuliani testimony (marcland).
|
Of course you do. Who could forget? I just caught Hannity and Colmes on Fox talking with Mayor Giuliani about his testimony before the 9/11 Commission. Much of the discussion was about the general tendency to want to assign blame with 20/20 hindsight. Nothing bothers me more…and most especially where this horrible event is concerned.
The arrogance, well after the fact, of judging decisions made in the blinding dust of the moment is inexcusable. Unfortunately, it is all too easy to get caught up in the blame game. If you want to point fingers at the politicians, be my guest…just be fair. But the face of any belly-crawling-scum will certainly deserve to find my willing and able fist if it dare disparage the firefighters or policemen who risked and gave their lives in the service of others.
With all the noise being generated with this ‘independent’ commission, I think we all could use some clarity. So…
Let us set aside all the political bickering to reflect, for a brief moment, on that terrible day. My feeble attempt at expressing my true, visceral, feelings on that day is below. I know there is no way that mere words could possibly convey the enormity of that day and how it impacted me…and continues to. So my only hope is that my words will elicit in you your own very personal and unique feelings on 9/11/01. I know most of them were painful…especially for any who lost a loved one, friend, etc. I apologize in advance if I cause any pain. I only do this here because it saddens me greatly that so many seem to have forgotten.
-----
Do you remember?
All memories fade with time, some more than others. This one, however, will never leave me.
We were sitting in the 1st year medical lecture hall. Cell phones rang, irritating but nothing out of the ordinary. A few students listened to their phones after a second ring…and walked out of the room. As the 8am lecture was drawing to a close the always-gruff Dr. G walked to the front of the class. He took a second, looking at the podium. Then he looked out at the class. The words hit me as his look had its effect, “One of the World Trade Center towers in New York City is on fire. It appears to not be an accident. It appears that we have been attacked. Class is dismissed. Go home.”
I have no memory of the short drive to my friend’s apartment. We sat and watched. Absolute disbelief and stunned silence cast a pall over the room. With our over-connected, real-time, world…I saw with my own eyes…the second plane hit the Tower. With that, all suggestions of accident were abandoned and we knew…
We sat and watched. The towers, one and then the other, imploded and fell straight down to the ground. We saw tiny dots falling…people choosing to jump to their deaths rather than sit in a doomed building.
Scenes bounced up and down as cameramen risked their lives trying to capture and transmit images of firefighters and policemen risking their own lives while ensuring the survival of as many as possible.
I sat many miles from The City. Never before had I felt so useless. Never before had every ounce of my being wanted to reach out and help. Never before had I been so grateful to be safe, and to know that my family was also.
Yet somehow, in the midst of watching my Countrymen engulfed by such horror…
Never before had I wanted so badly be in The City, to be a part of that groundswell of NYC comradery…
Never before had I wanted so badly to be a New Yorker.
-----
Do You Remember?
Update:
Here's more on the Giuliani testimony (marcland).
|
