September 11
No matter how busy I was this morning, I felt it important to pause for a few minutes and reflect on the catastrophic events of September 11, 2001 as well as our collective response to these events.
We all know where we were when we heard of the twin towers. Many of us remember that the Pentagon was also attacked. A minority, I suspect, reflect on this day as well about the heroic passengers who thwarted an attack and lost their lives in the Pennsylvania crash.
Our memory seems to fade - even from the most horrible of events. This, one could argue, is a healthy response to grief.
A fading memory, however, is not a healthy response when looking back on how our Nation responded to this trauma. We cannot forget about "weapons of mass destruction," two wars, domestic surveillance, the security checks at our airports, Guantanamo, water boarding, and the heroic men and women who have - since these days - been away from their homes and families trying to fight to see such events never happen again.
I cannot disagree with anyone who makes a sincere interpretation of the facts. I certainly am not sure what decisions I would have made in these circumstances other than to do all I can to protect and love my country and its people. But I can get fairly upset with those who forget history, distort what facts we have, and interpret the World's response as a set of historic vignettes more worthy of a comic book than of history.
If we cannot - on this day if any other - remove our blinders and bias, look at one another, and re-discover anew what September 11 and our response have done to our nation and the world, what hope have we?
We should have the deepest faith that the wrongs against our people will be righted. But we should also be mindful that the wrongs we have inflicted against others will be subject to the same calculus. As Jefferson said: "“I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that his justice cannot sleep forever."
So we must, at least for a moment, look beyond the ignorant campaign rhetoric and the many other inane efforts organizations take to demean our intelligence. We must examine common spiritual bonds that are far deeper than any individual political position. We must be certain that what we are doing as a country is for the Good, or, we should consider extending Lincoln's words and expect to pay in further blood and pain for “all the wealth piled by the bondsman's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil” to the damages inflicted on our earth and our fellow man by individuals and groups who would feel at home with the bondsman of past centuries.
I do not have answers. My only real position is a simple one: My heart and prayers go out to a Nation traumatized by a catastrophic day; a Nation whose wounds fester as our response to this day leads to further death, pain, and loss.
The only response to this day is silence, reflection, and a commitment to examine our world through new eyes so that we can find peace in the past and a clear direction going forward. Mr. Lincoln's words only a few weeks before his death also seem apropos both to the losses we have already incurred and to the pain we face ahead. He said "It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion."
If only we could agree on what measures such devotion should take.
A prayer, then, for all of those who died, for all of those who wait for loved ones to return home, and for the rest of us - who one way or another - bear some resulting burden that we will pass down to future generations.
We all know where we were when we heard of the twin towers. Many of us remember that the Pentagon was also attacked. A minority, I suspect, reflect on this day as well about the heroic passengers who thwarted an attack and lost their lives in the Pennsylvania crash.
Our memory seems to fade - even from the most horrible of events. This, one could argue, is a healthy response to grief.
A fading memory, however, is not a healthy response when looking back on how our Nation responded to this trauma. We cannot forget about "weapons of mass destruction," two wars, domestic surveillance, the security checks at our airports, Guantanamo, water boarding, and the heroic men and women who have - since these days - been away from their homes and families trying to fight to see such events never happen again.
I cannot disagree with anyone who makes a sincere interpretation of the facts. I certainly am not sure what decisions I would have made in these circumstances other than to do all I can to protect and love my country and its people. But I can get fairly upset with those who forget history, distort what facts we have, and interpret the World's response as a set of historic vignettes more worthy of a comic book than of history.
If we cannot - on this day if any other - remove our blinders and bias, look at one another, and re-discover anew what September 11 and our response have done to our nation and the world, what hope have we?
We should have the deepest faith that the wrongs against our people will be righted. But we should also be mindful that the wrongs we have inflicted against others will be subject to the same calculus. As Jefferson said: "“I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that his justice cannot sleep forever."
So we must, at least for a moment, look beyond the ignorant campaign rhetoric and the many other inane efforts organizations take to demean our intelligence. We must examine common spiritual bonds that are far deeper than any individual political position. We must be certain that what we are doing as a country is for the Good, or, we should consider extending Lincoln's words and expect to pay in further blood and pain for “all the wealth piled by the bondsman's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil” to the damages inflicted on our earth and our fellow man by individuals and groups who would feel at home with the bondsman of past centuries.
I do not have answers. My only real position is a simple one: My heart and prayers go out to a Nation traumatized by a catastrophic day; a Nation whose wounds fester as our response to this day leads to further death, pain, and loss.
The only response to this day is silence, reflection, and a commitment to examine our world through new eyes so that we can find peace in the past and a clear direction going forward. Mr. Lincoln's words only a few weeks before his death also seem apropos both to the losses we have already incurred and to the pain we face ahead. He said "It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion."
If only we could agree on what measures such devotion should take.
A prayer, then, for all of those who died, for all of those who wait for loved ones to return home, and for the rest of us - who one way or another - bear some resulting burden that we will pass down to future generations.
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