91101 Remembered - Again, And Again, And Again

A TERRIBLE ANNIVERSARY
Today is the fifteenth anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center Towers, the Pentagon and wherever Flight 93 was headed before Todd Beamer and the other heroes aboard foiled the hijacking by crashing it in a field near Shanksville, PA at the cost of their lives and all aboard.

I'VE WRITTEN ABOUT THIS BEFORE
I've written about this terrible event many times, most recently a year ago, HERE.  In that short essay I gave you links to many others that I've written.  I know most of us have been inundated with remembrances of that terrible day over the past few days.  In fact, I've recently watched a television  series on the event and the aftermath which only dredged up my anger again.

THEY WERE PEOPLE
If you remember no other person, remember Christine Hanson, the youngest person to die in those tragic events that day.  Remember how Christine's life was snuffed out when the airplane she and her parents were flying in crashed into the World Trade Center.  Remember how they, along with nearly 3,000 other victims of those attacks, were pulverized - shredded like meat through a grinder - as the towers imploded.  Remember that those horrific clouds of dust and debris carried chunks of humans as they rolled up Manhattan that day.  Remember those poor people who chose to leap to their deaths from 80 floors in the air rather than be incinerated by the heat of those fires estimated to be 2,000 degrees.  Remember those brave first responders - more than 300 of them - who entered those burning buildings to try to help others escape, only to be trapped as the buildings collapsed.

REMEMBER
Remember that day....  Teach those too young to remember just what happened, and why it's important to remember.  I think it's critical that all Americans remember what happened that day, and what it has meant to our country and the world ever since.  To learn more about the victims of 91101, CNN has maintained a site for that purpose.  It will reside on my home page for future reference, but for now you can reach it HERE.  Clearly, we must remain vigilant, as demonstrated by the recent attack close to home in San Bernardino.  We must NEVER let our guard down... and we must NEVER FORGET.

And It Continues...

AN UNFORGETTABLE,  TRAGIC DAY
Fourteen years ago today, September 11, 2001,  the United States of America suffered a horrendous, coordinated attack by Islamic extremists that took nearly 3,000 lives at three separate venues.

HORRIFIC
That date produced tragedy and heroism - and a lifetime of grief for those with loved ones who were killed in those cowardly attacks.  Those innocent people who died that morning, and the brave first responders who went into the bowels of the World Trade Center Towers and the Pentagon looking for survivors, will remain in my heart forever.  On this anniversary of that date I want to specifically remember two of the victims - the youngest and one of the most heroic.

AN ANGEL...

Today Christine Hanson, who died along with her parents when they were vaporized when their airplane crashed into the World Trade Center, would have been sixteen years old.  She would have been a junior in high school, perhaps on the cheer squad or a star on the soccer team.  Or, perhaps, she would have been a budding musician or actress.  Or, she might have been an outstanding student.  Or, perhaps she would have fallen in love by now.  We will never know, because that young life was snuffed out.

"LET'S ROLL..."

Todd Beamer was a 32 year old software salesman, father of two sons and a daughter that would be born in January, 2002, just a few months after 9/11/01.  She is 13 years old today.   Beamer and other passengers attacked the hijackers of Flight 93, keeping it from attacking the apparent target in Washington, D.C.  The plane crashed in a field outside Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
 

PREVIOUS LINKS
I've written about this attack for several years on or around this date.  Here are links to what I've written in the past.

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

NEVER FORGET..... NEVER FORGIVE

September 11, 2001 - Ten Years Later

A SAD ANNIVERSARY THIS WEEKEND
This weekend we mark the 10th anniversary of the attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon - as dastardly a deed as has been perpetrated on our country in its history. And, even as remembrances are being prepared throughout the country, we hear of the possibility of another attack planned for this weekend by the same band of lunatics, as THEY also mark this anniversary.

COSTA MESA REMEMBRANCE
In Costa Mesa a remembrance will be held on Sunday, Patriot Day, beginning at 9 a.m. Here's a copy of the flier for the event.
THE CNN 911 MEMORIAL SITE
Those of you who have been loyal readers since I began this blog in 2005 will recall that I've written about this tragic day every year. Today I'm not going to try to recount all those essays, but will provide you with links to them so you can visit or re-visit my thoughts as each year passed. I will also refer you to the CNN 911 Memorial link I've had on the side of this page since the beginning. You can also reach it HERE. It provides you with information about the victims in many different ways - by name, by company, by flight, etc. It tells you, for example, that the youngest person killed that day in those events was then-2 year-old Christine Hanson, shown here with her parents, who also perished.

"LET'S ROLL"
In the past I've written about Todd Beamer, whose battle cry of "Let's Roll!" launched a counter-attack on Flight 93 that probably saved hundreds of lives in Washington, D.C. as the embattled hijackers flew that plane into the ground near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.


MANY HEROES
That day had many heroes - those brave first responders who did their very best to save the occupants of the Twin Towers as they burned and, eventually, imploded. Hundreds sacrificed their lives to save others. This weekend we will hear those stories, and many more, all over again as our nation pauses to mark this day.

MY PREVIOUS POSTS
Here are the links to my previous essays about September 11, 2001. In them I wrote about friends who were personally impacted by the crashes, and about not knowing if some of them survived. I wrote about the victims and survivors and much, much more. The first two were published on my earlier host site which provided no way to show images.

2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010

A SMALL MEASURE OF SUCCESS - FINALLY
I also wrote about the day we finally managed to locate and kill Osama Bin Laden earlier this year, HERE.

SOME PERSPECTIVE
As we mark this day, I think it's important to try to put this "War on Terror" into perspective. HERE's a link to a site that will give you information about casualties in all other wars and police actions in which the United States of America has been involved. I DO NOT, for one second, diminish the loss of American lives over this past decade - every single one is precious. The advancements in battlefield medical treatment and the speed with which our troops can be retrieved from the battlefield and delivered to medical care is tremendous, which has kept the death count lower than decades ago in the Viet Nam War, for example - where more than 58,000 Americans died over the four years of that strife. Please take a few minutes to visit this site.

REMEMBER OUR TROOPS
I hope you'll find a few minutes Sunday to stop and consider what the events of September 11, 2001 has meant to this country. The loss of life and treasure is almost too difficult to calculate and the battle is far from over. Please pause to give thanks to the men and women of our armed forces who VOLUNTEER to fight this battle and do so with pride and bravery. Remember young Costa Mesa immigrant, Jose Angel Garibay, who joined the Marines, hoped one day to become a Costa Mesa police officer and was among the very first American troopers to die in the War On Terror. And don't forget our brave first responders - those Firefighters and Police Officers who stand tall, protecting us every day. Click HERE for a very special remembrance of Garibay's service by a Costa Mesa employee.

"WHERE WERE YOU..."
Finally, this powerful video clip - one of dozens available for viewing on YouTube - with background music by Alan Jackson, will remind you of the horror of that day. As you watch it remember the lives that were snuffed out after those airplanes crashed into the buildings in New York City and Washington, D.C. Remember those brave souls who fought back on Flight 93 and died in that field in Pennsylvania. Remember that, as the Twin Towers crumbled, nearly three thousand people died. They didn't pass quietly in their sleep, they were murdered. Those who did not die immediately when the planes hit the buildings or didn't leap to their deaths to escape the flames were crushed, torn limb from limb and vaporized - many were never identified.




CNN COVERAGE
A neighbor, moved by this blog entry, sent me THIS LINK to a CNN report from 2002. It's 90 minutes of coverage of that day, presented while the wounds were still open and festering.

NEVER FORGIVE AND NEVER FORGET