Soccer Dad

Eight years later ...

Ron Coleman's 5 part recollection of his escape from Manhattan eight years ago is fantastic.

In many way it was similar to what my brother in law did. Of course, he started out from the 51st story of the north tower. On the way down sfirefighter had broken into a vending machine so theycould provide drinks to the escapees - the stairwells were extremely hot. About the 20th floor a firefighter handed him bottled water. He realizes that within an hour that firefighter would be dead.

From my standpoint, the incongruity of the day still stands out. If I didn't know anything else, it was a great day. I came home early to be with my wife and newborn daughter who were sitting out on the sunny lawn waiting for me.

But I was coming home because at that point we couldn't find anything out about my brother in law. And even if I hadn't left early, since I was a federal employee in the DC area, I would have been sent home out of fear that the DC area might come under attack again.

On such a beautiful fall day, there was a palpable sense of fear. We were vulnerable.

It could be easy to forget what happened, who was lost and what it meant. But we mustn't.

UPDATE: I can't believe that I forgot to link to the late Michael Kelly's "When innocents are the enemy" (as it was called in the WaPo).

If it is morally acceptable to murder, in the name of a necessary blow for freedom, a woman on a Tel Aviv street, or to blow up a disco full of teenagers, or to bomb a family restaurant -- then it must be morally acceptable to drive two jetliners into a place where 50,000 people work. In moral logic, what is the difference? If the murder of innocent people is for whatever reason excusable, it is excusable; if it is legitimate, it is legitimate. If acceptable on a small scale, so too on a grand.

Alas it's still relevant after all these years.

Bookworm Room has an extensive linkfest, Never Forget - Sept 11, 2001. Bruttally Honest (included at Bookworm) recalls the day and reproduces the classic Cox and Forkum cartoon. Crossing the Rubicon recalls the grandeur of the towers. Elder of Ziyon noticed their absence. Seraphic Secret notes the importance of words when referring to the attack.