(no subject)
September 11, 2010.
A day that is legally called "Patriot Day" in America, but is seldom referred to anything but "9/11" or "September 11th."
Nine years ago, September 11, 2001, terrorists hijacked four airplanes. Two of which were flown into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center. Another, the Pentagon. And the last crashed in a field in my home state of Pennsylvania.
Thousands of lives were lost that day, be they the innocent passengers on the planes--including the brave people of Flight 93 who fought back, the innocent people working inside the Towers, or the brave men and women who gave their lives to save them. Today we remember them and honor that memory.
I'm sure most of the Americans on my Flist remember where they were and what they were doing when they found out about it, the same way generations before us have memories of when they found out about the JFK assassination, Pearl Harbor, et cetera. I was only 8 years old and I had never even heard of the World Trade Center, nor did I know what really happened until the day after because my mother, always trying to shelter me from the unpleasant realities out there, didn't tell me and turned off the radio after she realized I was listening to them talk about the burning buildings. Regardless of all this, I remember the day vividly--how sick and awful I was feeling as I stayed home from school, even the texture of the pajamas I was wearing. I didn't understand what was going on when my mom told me to shut up so she could hear the guy on the radio better--only that somewhere in America there were huge, important buildings on fire for some reason. At school the next day I was told dozens of conflicting, exaggerated stories by my classmates.
That being said, the way people have taken it out on all Muslims or those who live in predominantly Muslim areas is disgusting. "Burn the Quran" day is a sick, sick thing. Never should we blame an entire group of people for the actions of a few--or even a lot--within it. The people responsible for 9/11 are the only ones who deserve the blame for their terrible acts. Not everyone in Germany was a Nazi. Not everyone in Japan wanted to bomb Pearl Harbor. Not every Muslim wants to kill all Americans and supposedly destroy everything we as a country claim to stand for.
Some look back at 9/11 and remember the patriotism it inspired in parts of America. Others remember how security on everything had to be tightened because of the fear and paranoia the attack caused. Some look back and remember how people decided that they must be evil terrorists. Regardless of what today means to you, it's surely a day that evokes a lot of emotions in millions of people. It's also, without a doubt, the anniversary of a tragedy.