Sunday, September 11, 2005
D-Day + 1,460
Four years after the world watched the second jet slam into the World Trade Center on live TV, four years after seeing people just like us jumping to their deaths from hundreds of feet up in the twin towers to avoid the flames, four years after hundreds of ordinary men and women displayed extraordinary courage by rushing into those towers to battle the same flames- never to emerge, and four years after the "Arab street" danced and sang in praise of the attackers- what, exactly, has changed?
Not enough, I fear. Time heals all wounds, but it also provides a convenient hole in the sand for those who wish one. Headlines across the nation on September 12th, 2005, will repeat something akin to the following:
US marks 9/11 anniversary with march, silence.
Why silence? Has the terror and rage of that day already faded from our consciousness? Are we mute with pent up hostility, unable to find the words to express our continued anguish over those lost that day? Or are we afraid to speak up, worried that we might in some way offend some special interest group? SecDef Rumsfeld said it best today:
"I wish we could say ... That this is a time for peaceful remembrance, that we were gathering today to commemorate a danger that had long since past," Rumsfeld said. "... But we cannot. The enemy, though seriously weakened and continuously under pressure, continues to plot attacks and the danger they pose to the free world is real and present."
So why silence? We have been told repeatedly that Islam is not the enemy- it is only that the enemy is Islamic. Fine. And of course the German's living outside the camps six decades ago had no idea what that awful smell was, either. We, the Allies, heaped generations of shame on the Germans- with the result that it is highly unlikely that the fringe anti-Semitic German political groups will ever gain power again. Today, however, we tiptoe around the idea that all Muslims share the responsibility to put an end to the ideals of hatred that lead to terrorist attacks. Muslims in New York, Washington, Madrid, London, Bali and on and on- are quick to assure us that none of them have any idea where that horrible smell is coming from today, and they do not seem too intersted in finding out. Why aren't we asking them-especially today of all days, to look a little harder?
Meanwhile, in our public schools our teachers struggle with how to address the September 11, 2001 attacks. As a result we have text books that say things such as:
"Bin Laden's experience in Afghanistan convinced him that super-powers could be beaten. He also believed that Western ideas had contaminated Muslim society. He was outraged when Saudi Arabia allowed American troops on Saudi soil after Iraq invaded Kuwait."
and
"High levels of poverty ignored by undemocratic and corrupt governments provided bin Laden a pool of disaffected young Muslims who saw the United States as the evil source of their misery and the supporter of Israel's oppression of Palestinian Muslims."
Folks- the "war" ain't over yet, not by a long shot. It's not history- it is an act in progress. Why are our teachers addressing this with our children? Why are parents not addressing this at home? If you want to tell Bobby or Jane that their puppy is off on a big farm now, go ahead. But if your kids are 10 or older they know about September 11th, they know about OBL- they know about Jihad. Do you?
Sounds like one of those public service announcements against drugs, or teen sex, doesn't it? So why are there no PSAs against jihad or radical Islam? Maybe I missed them, but in the few months I was home in America over the summer, I didn't see any. Why? Because we are avoiding pointing the finger, being sensitive to group identities and trying desperately not to offend. To offend is one of the greatest crimes America can commit- and we have already offended the world.
Since not too long after the attacks it has become cliche to say that the President has "squandered the good will of the world":
"Most serious of all is the goodwill that has been spent so callously by the White House. In the words of that famous French newspaper headline four years ago 'We are all Americans' ... It is difficult to imagine that sentiment being expressed today."
Saudi Arabia's Al-Watan slammed the United States for tarring all Arabs and Muslims with the terrorist brush "without differentiating between the Al-Qaeda organization - which includes Americans, Europeans and Asians within its ranks - and the Arab countries, chiefly Saudi Arabia, to which some Al-Qaeda elements belong."
It wrote: "Washington justifies this generalization by the fact that most of those who carried out the attacks held Saudi citizenship, overlooking the role Saudi Arabia played in uprooting Al-Qaeda ... from Saudi society."
Read that last line again- uprooting al Qaeda from Saudi society. Not destroying al Qaeda, not bringing its leaders to justice- just tossing it out of Saudi Arabia. Great job on that, by the way. And it is not just the Saudis:
Egyptian Researcher Zaynab Abd Al-'Aziz, Iqra TV, May 26, 2005
Abd Al-Aziz: "Yes. And how could the U.S. win legitimacy for this without anyone saying that they are perpetrating massacres and waging a Crusader war? It fabricated the 9/11 show. I call it a fabrication because much has been written on this. We are also to blame. Why do we accept a single perspective? Countless books were written, some of which were even translated into Arabic, like Thierry Meyssan's 9/11- The Big Lie and Pentagate. 'Pentagate' like Watergate. He brings documents to prove that the method used in destroying the three [sic] towers was "controlled demolition." This is an architectural engineering theory, which was invented by the Americans. They teach it in their universities. They make movies and documentaries about it. They incorporated it in movie scenarios and then carried it out in real life. Why do we accept this?"
Host: "My God, Doctor. This is unbelievable! You're saying that this destruction..."
Abd Al-Aziz: "...was a controlled demolition. The building collapsed in its place, without hitting a single building to its left or right. The three towers fell in place."
Host: "In the same method they use in movies and plays?"
Abd Al-Aziz: "Yes, Exactly like that. That is how the U.S. won international legitimacy. You could sense the [9/11] operation was pre-planned because many things were revealed in the days that followed. For example, 4,000 Jews caught influenza on that exact day. They set a timer, and all 4,000..."
Egyptian General (Ret.) Dr. Mahmoud Khalaf, Egyptian Channel 1, May 5, 2005
"It was announced that [Vice] President Dick Cheney- this was published in The Washington Post- Cheney had called the secret phone of the American president, and told him it was an 'inside job, that there were traitors within the White House. The president slammed the phone down and told his aides, 'Air Force 1 is next,' and he gave the order to land.
"They, not us, published these things, and in The Washington Post no less! On September 12 and 13 the press reported this, and the questions were asked.
"But all the questions stopped, and nothing was said about this once the American President accused [bin Laden].
"Another thing disappeared at the same time. We all know that there were anthrax letters. At the same time they accomplished the rest of the goals.
Ahmad Yousuf, Editor-in-Chief of the Washington-based Middle East Magazine, Al-Manar TV, December 30, 2004
Yousuf: "These events [9/11] were preceded by very detailed planning, conducted by strategists who wove the strands of this plot. Some people were probably recruited, and, as has been pointed out by a certain Western intellectual, Israel excels at espionage within the U.S., and is capable of disguising many operations as Islamic. In other words, Israel is capable of penetrating certain Islamic circles, of directing and running them behind the scenes, so that they will conduct operations from which Israel benefits. Anyone who considers the events of 9/11 cannot say that the Muslims gained anything. There's another dimension, which some people may have noticed. No one could have captured the pictures [of the attacks] so perfectly except for the cameras in the hands of several Mossad agents, who were near the scene of events and succeeded in filming the scene so that it will always serve Zionism to remind the world of the Arabs' and Muslims' crimes against America. These pictures were filmed very expertly, so that they would be a constant reminder to America and the Western world that Islamic terrorism is a threat to their culture, their ideals, and their values."
Note the multiple citings of Thierry Meyssan, the French conspiracy not to blame lends credence to the "poor us" mentality- and you can be sure they love the moonbats in America who believe the government of the United States was behind the events of Sept. 11th.
And so, four years after the enemy stormed our shores we remember in silence. If we wish to honor the men, women and children we lost that day we should not be silenced. We should not be afraid to call an entire religion to account for the cancer that grows within it- to be sure we cannot blame September 11th and the subsequent attacks on every Muslim- but we can blame their complacency on them. We can and should demand that the "moderate mass" of Islam inquire as to the smell they have so long ignored. We can and should make them a central part of ensuring that there are no more September 11ths. Silence is not going to accomplish that.9/11/2005 07:00:00 PM posted by Dr. Demarche
Not enough, I fear. Time heals all wounds, but it also provides a convenient hole in the sand for those who wish one. Headlines across the nation on September 12th, 2005, will repeat something akin to the following:
US marks 9/11 anniversary with march, silence.
Why silence? Has the terror and rage of that day already faded from our consciousness? Are we mute with pent up hostility, unable to find the words to express our continued anguish over those lost that day? Or are we afraid to speak up, worried that we might in some way offend some special interest group? SecDef Rumsfeld said it best today:
"I wish we could say ... That this is a time for peaceful remembrance, that we were gathering today to commemorate a danger that had long since past," Rumsfeld said. "... But we cannot. The enemy, though seriously weakened and continuously under pressure, continues to plot attacks and the danger they pose to the free world is real and present."
So why silence? We have been told repeatedly that Islam is not the enemy- it is only that the enemy is Islamic. Fine. And of course the German's living outside the camps six decades ago had no idea what that awful smell was, either. We, the Allies, heaped generations of shame on the Germans- with the result that it is highly unlikely that the fringe anti-Semitic German political groups will ever gain power again. Today, however, we tiptoe around the idea that all Muslims share the responsibility to put an end to the ideals of hatred that lead to terrorist attacks. Muslims in New York, Washington, Madrid, London, Bali and on and on- are quick to assure us that none of them have any idea where that horrible smell is coming from today, and they do not seem too intersted in finding out. Why aren't we asking them-especially today of all days, to look a little harder?
Meanwhile, in our public schools our teachers struggle with how to address the September 11, 2001 attacks. As a result we have text books that say things such as:
"Bin Laden's experience in Afghanistan convinced him that super-powers could be beaten. He also believed that Western ideas had contaminated Muslim society. He was outraged when Saudi Arabia allowed American troops on Saudi soil after Iraq invaded Kuwait."
and
"High levels of poverty ignored by undemocratic and corrupt governments provided bin Laden a pool of disaffected young Muslims who saw the United States as the evil source of their misery and the supporter of Israel's oppression of Palestinian Muslims."
Folks- the "war" ain't over yet, not by a long shot. It's not history- it is an act in progress. Why are our teachers addressing this with our children? Why are parents not addressing this at home? If you want to tell Bobby or Jane that their puppy is off on a big farm now, go ahead. But if your kids are 10 or older they know about September 11th, they know about OBL- they know about Jihad. Do you?
Sounds like one of those public service announcements against drugs, or teen sex, doesn't it? So why are there no PSAs against jihad or radical Islam? Maybe I missed them, but in the few months I was home in America over the summer, I didn't see any. Why? Because we are avoiding pointing the finger, being sensitive to group identities and trying desperately not to offend. To offend is one of the greatest crimes America can commit- and we have already offended the world.
Since not too long after the attacks it has become cliche to say that the President has "squandered the good will of the world":
"Most serious of all is the goodwill that has been spent so callously by the White House. In the words of that famous French newspaper headline four years ago 'We are all Americans' ... It is difficult to imagine that sentiment being expressed today."
Saudi Arabia's Al-Watan slammed the United States for tarring all Arabs and Muslims with the terrorist brush "without differentiating between the Al-Qaeda organization - which includes Americans, Europeans and Asians within its ranks - and the Arab countries, chiefly Saudi Arabia, to which some Al-Qaeda elements belong."
It wrote: "Washington justifies this generalization by the fact that most of those who carried out the attacks held Saudi citizenship, overlooking the role Saudi Arabia played in uprooting Al-Qaeda ... from Saudi society."
Read that last line again- uprooting al Qaeda from Saudi society. Not destroying al Qaeda, not bringing its leaders to justice- just tossing it out of Saudi Arabia. Great job on that, by the way. And it is not just the Saudis:
Egyptian Researcher Zaynab Abd Al-'Aziz, Iqra TV, May 26, 2005
Abd Al-Aziz: "Yes. And how could the U.S. win legitimacy for this without anyone saying that they are perpetrating massacres and waging a Crusader war? It fabricated the 9/11 show. I call it a fabrication because much has been written on this. We are also to blame. Why do we accept a single perspective? Countless books were written, some of which were even translated into Arabic, like Thierry Meyssan's 9/11- The Big Lie and Pentagate. 'Pentagate' like Watergate. He brings documents to prove that the method used in destroying the three [sic] towers was "controlled demolition." This is an architectural engineering theory, which was invented by the Americans. They teach it in their universities. They make movies and documentaries about it. They incorporated it in movie scenarios and then carried it out in real life. Why do we accept this?"
Host: "My God, Doctor. This is unbelievable! You're saying that this destruction..."
Abd Al-Aziz: "...was a controlled demolition. The building collapsed in its place, without hitting a single building to its left or right. The three towers fell in place."
Host: "In the same method they use in movies and plays?"
Abd Al-Aziz: "Yes, Exactly like that. That is how the U.S. won international legitimacy. You could sense the [9/11] operation was pre-planned because many things were revealed in the days that followed. For example, 4,000 Jews caught influenza on that exact day. They set a timer, and all 4,000..."
Egyptian General (Ret.) Dr. Mahmoud Khalaf, Egyptian Channel 1, May 5, 2005
"It was announced that [Vice] President Dick Cheney- this was published in The Washington Post- Cheney had called the secret phone of the American president, and told him it was an 'inside job, that there were traitors within the White House. The president slammed the phone down and told his aides, 'Air Force 1 is next,' and he gave the order to land.
"They, not us, published these things, and in The Washington Post no less! On September 12 and 13 the press reported this, and the questions were asked.
"But all the questions stopped, and nothing was said about this once the American President accused [bin Laden].
"Another thing disappeared at the same time. We all know that there were anthrax letters. At the same time they accomplished the rest of the goals.
Ahmad Yousuf, Editor-in-Chief of the Washington-based Middle East Magazine, Al-Manar TV, December 30, 2004
Yousuf: "These events [9/11] were preceded by very detailed planning, conducted by strategists who wove the strands of this plot. Some people were probably recruited, and, as has been pointed out by a certain Western intellectual, Israel excels at espionage within the U.S., and is capable of disguising many operations as Islamic. In other words, Israel is capable of penetrating certain Islamic circles, of directing and running them behind the scenes, so that they will conduct operations from which Israel benefits. Anyone who considers the events of 9/11 cannot say that the Muslims gained anything. There's another dimension, which some people may have noticed. No one could have captured the pictures [of the attacks] so perfectly except for the cameras in the hands of several Mossad agents, who were near the scene of events and succeeded in filming the scene so that it will always serve Zionism to remind the world of the Arabs' and Muslims' crimes against America. These pictures were filmed very expertly, so that they would be a constant reminder to America and the Western world that Islamic terrorism is a threat to their culture, their ideals, and their values."
Note the multiple citings of Thierry Meyssan, the French conspiracy not to blame lends credence to the "poor us" mentality- and you can be sure they love the moonbats in America who believe the government of the United States was behind the events of Sept. 11th.
And so, four years after the enemy stormed our shores we remember in silence. If we wish to honor the men, women and children we lost that day we should not be silenced. We should not be afraid to call an entire religion to account for the cancer that grows within it- to be sure we cannot blame September 11th and the subsequent attacks on every Muslim- but we can blame their complacency on them. We can and should demand that the "moderate mass" of Islam inquire as to the smell they have so long ignored. We can and should make them a central part of ensuring that there are no more September 11ths. Silence is not going to accomplish that.
