I wanted to post an excerpt from a speech that was given to me when I was a senior in high school, right after the attacks. The Jesuit teacher who was the orator and writer of this and many more literary offerings(37 books), and was the technical advisor on "The Exorcist" as well as a small cameo. He was recently fired for being too brash with students, but while brusque from my memory he served as an unfiltered bastion of truth. Truth at the expense of your feelings, something children today do not have in education.
The Tragedy, September 11, 2001
Reverend William O’Malley, SJ
Homily at Mass for Fordham Prep Students
A young woman knocked on my dorm room Tuesday night and asked the question we’ve probably all asked ourselves: "Why are people so evil?" I didn’t have a ready answer. Who could? So the rest of the evening and Wednesday morning I pondered that.
As Atticus Finch suggests in To Kill a Mockingbird, I tried to put myself into the skin of one of those pilots and see the world and life from inside him. He was probably a quite intelligent man, able to handle the enormous complexity of flying a transcontinental jet plane. Doubtlessly, as Muslim, he prayed five times a day—which is more often than most of us do—to the same God. He was utterly devoted to a cause, which was crystal clear to him—without any doubts or shadows or hesitations. He was, in a word, single-minded.
He was as single-minded as the crusaders who hacked their way to Jerusalem in the name of Jesus, as single-minded as the Inquisitors who perpetrated unutterable suffering in the name of the God who suffered for us all, as single-minded as the revolutionaries who rampaged through France decapitating any priest or nun or anyone with a claim to noble blood, as single-minded as the Nazis who obediently herded human beings as if they had no more value than cattle and gassed and incinerated them as even less valuable than cattle, as single-minded as Kamikaze pilots who dove their plane into American battleships.
As single-minded as Sen. Joseph McCarthy, who ruined countless human lives in order to root out members of the Communist Party. As single-minded as the Ku Klux Klan and Black Panthers. As single-minded as rebels who blow up busses of schoolchildren as a legitimate means to achieve what they totally believe is a righteous cause. As single-minded as the El Salvador government that sponsored a poster campaign: "Be a patriot. Kill a priest." As single-minded as the gangsta rappers who scream the answer is in killing police.
In every single one of those horrific situations, including what happened in America on Tuesday, every single person involved believed what he or she was engaged in was a righteous, justified, holy action. No doubts, no qualifications, no legitimate contrary arguments. All the problems of our lives are rooted in a single cause: it’s all the fault of the infidels, the Jews, the communists, the rich, the cops, the blacks, the whites, the Americans. They were utterly, unshakably—even in the face of death--certain,
My classroom is papered with slogans. One of them says, "The great sin is certitude, the great virtue is doubt." Another says: "The less you know, the more certain you can be." The people who perform human atrocities are not evil in themselves, the way cyanide is evil and cholera is evil. They are single-minded. Their inflexible convictions are incapable of seeing the complexities of human life. By their very single-mindedness, they were simple-minded. As George says to Lenny in Of Mice and Men, It ain’t wicked people that causes all the problems. It’s dumb people." Adolf Eichmann, who facilitated the transport of all the Jews in Europe to extermination camps, and Lt. William Calley, who led a platoon of soldiers to slaughter 360 helpless old men and women and infants at My Lai in Vietnam, weren’t evil. They were single-minded: that is, simple, gullible, stupid. It’s the age-old distinction between the sinner and the sin.
Already there are stories of people trashing American Arab mosques and businesses, just as they did German Jewish synagogues and business in the 30s. Plain, simple, stupid people.
They had never been led to get into other people’s skin and look around at life from their viewpoint. They were led to believe that the God who created life exults in death. They had never learned empathy—for the pain, the hopes, the bewilderment—of other human beings. Kill all compassion, all fellow-feeling with the infidel, the heretic, the kike, the kraut, the nigger, the honkey, the spick, the slope, the faggot, and chaos is inescapable. The beast in us is unleashed.
The reason for the existence of this school is not to get you into good colleges, to prepare you to be an attractive job candidate, to pave the yellow brick road to the American Dream. You’re here to learn how to think, how to reason, how to see and feel the complex evidence— even if it conflicts with your heartfelt beliefs, to learn how to put the evidence into a logical sequence so you can draw a balanced, personal conclusion and ask someone wiser to critique it. We’re here to invite you to ever more complex mind-challenges, to read novels and plays so you can get into other peoples’ skins and walk around in them awhile, live a thousand lives before you set out to live your own life. The most basic purpose of this institution is to train men and women who are not single-minded, not simple-minded fanatics, but people governed by the objective truth, by our common humanity, and—one hopes—by the selflessness of the cross.
Tuesday completely fissioned our American complacency. The same single-minded-ness governs our Monopoly capitalism and global popular culture: Profit justifies every-thing. The same single-mindedness roams our own streets: Violence will solve it all. Nothing will solve it all, not even universal literacy. We have to go beyond literacy, which is only a tool to understanding humanity, to seeing the complex truth in the midst of an even more complex background of self-interests and different agendas. We invite you to become fully human beings and, we hope, open-minded, open-hearted, open-handed Christians.
Toward the end of A Man for All Seasons, Thomas More’s jailer tries to excuse himself for having taken away More’s family. He’s just a nobody, following orders, he says, "You got to understand, sir. I’m just a plain simple man." And More sinks to his knees moaning, "Sweet Jesus! These plain, simple men!"
Where Were You on September 11th, 2001? (Originally Posted: 09/11/2012)
I was talking to my dad the other day and he was telling me how everyone in his generation remembers where they were when President Kennedy was assassinated. I thought to myself that for my generation the tragic event that everyone remembers vividly is what occurred on 09/11/01. So my question to you is where were you on September 11th, 2001?
I was in 8th grade. I had never heard of the World Trade Center before and when someone told me about it I assumed it was a mall or something because of the word "trade." I didn't really understand the situation or appreciate how scary it was until my friend told me that the White House had been evacuated. I remember an abnormal amount of kids being called out of class that day to go home. In my classes all we did that morning was watch the television reports of what was happening, until right before lunchtime when an announcement was made for all teachers to turn off their televisions.
When I got home I could tell my mom had been crying and was upset by what had happened. I remember thinking it was strange that when I turned on MTV to watch TRL that MTV was just showing one of the major news channels. My family watched the news all night.
What do you remember from that terrible day?
i was in 4th grade. Didn't really know the implications and what the world became after those unfortunate and tragic events. God Bless America.
^ +1... I think
11 years old, in school, all we were told in school was that our soccer practice was canceled for the day (score!), then when I got home I realized why (not score)... I didn't grasp the situation even then, thinking of it now makes me so fucking upset/angry. I'm glad Osama's dead. I wish he could die more. I hope they defiled his body before throwing it overboard. I just wish his death was a lot slower and more painful.
as a naturalized... i got no feeling for 911...
In high school. When the news came out, a group of white guys started a fight with the only two Arab kids at our school. I remember seeing the Arab kids taking off their belts and fucking the white kids up. Then, the white kids served a two year sentence each lol
Are you serious
LOL tards. Serves them right... if you're going to commit a hate crime, at least do it right.
What kind of fight involves taking off your belt? And for what purpose?
"Betta check yoself fool, Imma fuck you up with muh buckle!"
People at your school sucked at life back in the day.
Never happened.
They got a two year sentence for getting their ass beat? Gotta love justice.
I was doing homework when my mom rang and told me to put on the news channel. I then discovered who Saddam Hussein was at that point.
It is justice lol...6 or 7 football players vs two scrawny Arab guys, and they just attacked them at lunch. WTF...
Not gonna lie...I was pissed my morning cartoons didn't come on and I thought the news was trolling me...
I reference this every time I watch the news and they are reporting on something stupid.
"Where is Ja????"
I was in the 6th grade and was playing in the park during recess when we were rushed back into the school and not allowed to leave until our parents picked us up.
I was actual in the wtc the night before doing some shopping.
6th grade, mathematics class. Doing our algebra or some shit, and one of the teachers from the high school (I was at private school at the time) came in and called my teacher over, whispered something in her ear. Her face paled. The high school teacher turned to us and said, "The Twin Towers have been hit, and so has the Pentagon." Some kids gasped. I looked at people and said, "What's the Pentagon? You mean like the geometric shape?"
The high school didn't conduct class that day, just sat in the auditorium and watched the news. I remember my entire class being angry about that; "Why can't we watch TV too?" But no, we just continued on with our lives like nothing had happened. Went home that night and asked my mother to explain it all. She shrugged and said, "Some planes flew into these really important buildings in New York. That's all. Now fucking eat your vegetables."
3rd grade, age 9. dad is/was an airline pilot and was flying to DC that morning. he got diverted about 6 times, ended up in canada (almost as bad as getting hijacked and flown into an office building.........kidding), and we couldn't contact him for about 2 hours after the first plane hit.
my mom nearly fucking lost it to say the least.
bumping my post from a few months ago.
5th Grade History, my teacher stopped class and put it on the news.
Oh my god you are all kids.
It was my 2nd day at my 2nd job. I was in lower Manhattan and everyone was scared shitless and crying. My then-husband's aunt died that day, she was on the 92nd floor working for AON. It was a terrible, terrible day.
Thank you for sharing and sorry for your loss.
I was in 3rd grade and the school turned off all the TV's there was one in every room. So we couldn't watch the news a lot of kids got picked up from school and what not it was a crazy day. My parents wouldn't let me watch the planes hit when I got home from school.
you were in the 3rd grade? holy fuck dude, that means you joined WSO in high school? or are you some kind of child prodigy?
First couple weeks of freshman year. Woke up to my roommate's friend saying to turn on the tv, and see what's going on. My friend goes "which channel" to which my other buddy said: "it doesnt matter." which we thought was weird...until we turned it on. We were just hoping nothing would hit the 1,000 foot tall BofA tower in Atlanta, which was falling distance to our dorm.
PS, damn all of you are young.
I was in 4th grade but I had a dentist appointment that morning so I was sitting in my living room watching it on TV waiting for my mom to take me to the dentist. She walked into the room and just dropped her purse and cell phone on the ground when she saw what was happening on TV, and stared in disbelief. When I got back to school my teacher told me not to say anything about it to anyone, cause the class had been at PhyEd or something so they didn't know anything. We had the TVs off all day and tried to carry on as usual, but a lot of kids' parents came and picked them up within a few hours so they made an announcement over the loudspeaker and explained it the best they could. I remember not really understanding it at the time, but I watched some of the 10 Year Anniversary coverage this past fall on CNBC and started crying seeing those little kids reading their parents names, can't imagine going through what friends and family of the victims went through. Just makes me sick thinking about it.
I was in 6th grade. Had just woken up for school when my mom came into my room and told me what had happened. At the time I didn't know what the trade center was. Watched the TV and saw replays of the towers collapsing and realized how serious it was... that morning is still clear as day in my mind
This is actually one of the best (worst?) stories I have.
Sitting in High School ROTC. Most chilling moment of my life. The dude who taught the class was a retired Force Recon Marine. He let us watch for a few minutes. Turned off the TV and went to his office then completely fucking destroyed it, I mean broken desk, shattered monitor, etc. Opened his door, mumbled 'back to work' and left. He reactivated and left 2 days later.
damn.
Holy shit. That is a story.
7th grade in English class...I'm originally from CT, and we had an announcement come over the loud speakers, our teacher put on the television as the second plane was hitting. Incredibly surreal moment as it never seemed like something of such a tragic magnitude could happen to people and loved-ones we knew and in such close proximity to our bubble of a suburban middle school. The rest of the next few hours were hectic between different parents calling and physically coming in to school rooms let different classmates know of the situations of people close to them located either in the buildings or around Manhattan that day. I never will forget that realization that there really are bad people out there that hate our country and want to hurt innocent civillians.
I was in 4th grade. My dad worked at the trade center (bulding 6) so I knew what it was. Luckily everyone made it out of that building, but a lot of kids parents at my school worked in the towers. Horrible day.
I was across the street from the WTC. We had no idea what was actually happening as we went downstairs after the first plane hit. The speculation ranged from small propeller plane to missiles (it sounded like what I think a missile would sound like). The hole in the north tower was huge, so I didn't think it was a small prop plane.
When the second plane hit, I was convinced we were being attacked and assumed those two hits were the beginning of many more. I ran as fast as I could out of there. Strangely, most people seemed to be standing around in awe waiting for someone to tell them what to do, I guess.
Cell phones were really not working well at all, so I didn't really figure out what was going on until I heard on the radio what was happening at what I would guess was about 10 am. Even then, we didn't know that those would be the only planes that hit in NY.
It's hard to imagine being more frightened than that for me and is easily one of the worst days of my life. I think it's hard to overstate the impact that one day has had on the course of history since then.
I was in a plane when this happened. I just remember staring at the overhead GPS map screen and seeing our plane circling around Minneapolis 3 times. I thought it was an error at first, but everything changed when the captain announced that "pentagon was bombed" and that we were making an emergency landing.
Got stuck in Minneapolis for 3~4 days but I still remember watching the towers fall on CNN at the airport. Horrible.
You all young as fak,
I was in freshman year of high school and every class was frozen as we watched the news unfold in front of our eyes. Interestingly enough, I remember all the students asking the teacher who could've committed such a violent act, to which they had no clear answer. The only one who got it right? The janitor who made the call that it was most likely the middle east.
Sick brag about having Will Hunting as your Janitor
I was in 7th grade in the middle of butt fuck nowehere, Venezuela. Our american school pretty much stopped on its tracks after 10am or so. We didn't do anything until school ended, then I watched cnn for 8 hours
5th grade art class.
I took it personally. The anniversary of my dad's passing was the day before and I'd gotten a bit drunk the night before. The next morning, my roommates woke me up all like "YOU HAVE TO SEE THIS" and I got to the TV right before the second tower fell. Talked to family, everyone was safe and then watched it all on TV for a few hours, then met friends for lunch since classes were cancelled. The next day we all went to donate blood, but since there weren't many survivors, there wasn't a need for it. Everyone was just in a state of shock, it was surreal. That period of life was very confusing for me because I associated collective grief with my own, and I still do. My brain knows this is not the case, but another part of me doesn't understand that.
The plan became to finish school and go into the service, then the 2003 Iraq war happened and I flew off the handle: I was heavily involved in foreign affair studies at the time and realized that things were going to get real fucked up real quick, so I protested the war. Then Bush's "bring it on" pissed me off: YOU'RE NOT TAKING THAT BULLET YOU FUCKER, MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY ARE, ASSHOLE, DON'T EGG THOSE FUCKERS ON, IT'S BAD ENOUGH. It was always my personal view, and my political opposition was secondary: strange considering that not long before I'd wanted to fight in it. It didn't help that I'd blown my knee out and couldn't serve had I wanted to. I'm only now fixing it, so we'll see what happens.
I'm still kind of conflicted about the whole thing, I saw people blindly serving power and lost respect for their judgement, but knew the sacrifices and admired them for their committment. There will always be bad guys, maybe I'll join, I dunno, time will tell. I've always been a supporter of causes for the troops, and this didn't change even as one who disagreed with that invasion. I can't say I ever really fit in with the protest crowd and don't keep in touch with anyone from those days...they tended to be people I wouldn't otherwise want to bother with had it not been for that issue. I envy people that were able to be completely on one side or the other of that whole debate.
I pass the new towers every day while going to work and watched them pour the foundations, and the progress in construction. For me, it's symbolic: a decade later I was finally able to revisit everything with a clearer head, and even visited the memorial to see the names of people I'd known. I look around at the dudes with M-16s guarding WFC, and I'd like to think something like that won't happen again but I know it can: so for me, I've come to the realization to just lead a good life. It can all just be taken away with no warning, that's life, and it's a reminder to do life right...you go through it once.
I offer my condolences to anyone who lost someone that day, offer my thanks to the troops who defended us, and acknowledge those who stood up to an incompetent president. Hopefully, the future is brighter.
One last thing, personal shout out to Bin Laden: Fuck you, glad you're dead.
My parents were in New York that day. My dad was leaving that morning at around 6 ET to head home, but my mom was going to stick around and go sightseeing (most likely including the WTC) for the morning then catch a flight back later that day. I don't really know why she changed her mind and got on an earlier flight with my dad, but i thank God that she did. They were in the air when it all went down.
The weirdest thing that happened was that I vividly remember hearing my sister say to me that morning, "it's 9-11... that means something bad is going to happen today." The babysitter that brought me home from school casually mentioned that the World Trade Center had fallen down, and it was pretty tough understanding what that actually meant at the time.
I was still in High School. I remember in Algebra class the principal called down one of my classmates down to the office. We held a memorial next week for her dad because he was killed when the second tower collapsed.
Age 16, beginning of junior year of high school. I was in Spanish class. Afterward, somebody came up to me and said that some moron and accidentally run his plane into the World Trade Center. I kind of snickered and thought, "What. A. Moron." And I forgot about it--would have never thought about it again for the rest of my life. Then sitting in my IB Business class the assistant principal came in and gave the news--we watched 10 minutes of coverage and went back to work.
Our entire high school was orderly and class went on as planned for the rest of the day. I do remember a girl in my IB English class crying hysterically--not for the people killed but for the people who the U.S. would kill in response. 11 years later I'm still not sure how I feel about that gir's response, but it is what it is.
If you have time, watch "Charlie Wilson's War". It kind of tells a more complete story than the politicized version of reality. And it's a fun movie...
.......................................................what the fuck? what kind of pussy ass hipster bitch is this? I hope that hoe got slapped.
I was in sixth grade. They wouldn't tell us what happened and wouldn't let us watch "Channel One" in the morning (some national broadcast program for middle schools), so we went about our daily business. In retrospect, not sure how I feel about that, but I can certainly understand the logic. The only reason we knew something had happened was because parents were swooping their kids up out of class left and right and the teachers were frantic. Walked into my house to my parents hysterical, I will certainly never forget that.
I fucking love America. Never forget, folks.
I was a few months into basic training as part of my national service and that night our CO briefed us that we may well deploy quite soon :o.
In elementary math. Remember watching it on tv and no one knew wtf it really meant. I was living in Halifax, Nova Scotia at the time.. We had a SHIT tonne of planes diverted up here from the new england/ nyc area.. most of my friends families had put people up with places to stay, the air port was just packed full of stranded people.. Nice to see Canada and the US help each other when shit hits the fan.. My condolences to the folks on here who were hit much closer to home.
Wow, I'm old...
I was in Navy boot camp.
The drill instructors came into our class room (listening to something about knot-tying or something), told us what had happened or that the base was being locked down. I really don't remember exactly, I just know it didn't really impact me the way that it did people outside of boot camp. They told us some planes hit, didn't say it was terrorism, didn't say they were full of people, etc. We didn't really know what was going on.
They showed us the news later that night or on the weekend. After that, we knew what it really was; that we were in boot camp at the time of a terrorist attack on US soil of unprecedented size, and the US would be going from peace time to war rapidly.
We were gung-ho, we were angry, we all wanted to go to war. I personally got very caught up in it all for months if not years. I didn't get through the rest of training before Afghanistan had been sidelined for Iraq, and I was all too happy to get a piece of some action, anything. It had felt very strange not getting out there sooner.
I deployed at the beginning of the Iraq war, and was part of the initial salvo from sea. In hind-sight, I have very mixed feelings about where 9/11 took me. I feel sad for those that lost loved ones that day, as well as the soldiers, marines, sailors, and casualties of war that came later.
I was in high school. I could see the whole NYC skyline and I saw the second tower go down. It was crazy.
I was on the second floor of 1362 East 59th Street, Chicago, IL standing in the hallway on the second floor of my high school.
Senior Year of H.S. i was at an early morning church class, someone came in late sad a small plane flew into the WTC, later went home in time to watch the second Jet fly into the towers. Spent the whole day watching the news in my different classes. Football practice was cancelled and the coaches pulled us together to ask us what we think we should do. We played that weekend and it was pretty emotional.
6th grade- Teacher walks in tells us the Twin Towers have been hit, my response you gotta be kidding and she says No I am not!.
7th grade. I was getting ready for school and watching the Today show....As soon as I saw the first tower collapse I ran to my parents room to wake them up and tell them what had happened. They couldn't believe it....
I can't believe its been 11 years....
I never understood the whole "dead Iraqis since 2003" thing... is every death in Iraq now our fault? It seems like a pretty common reaction. I don't think him wanting a piece of the action included killing any innocents, probably just going after the fucks who planned to kill, gee, ya know, ~3000 innocent people on our soil?
Everything's our fault. But George W Bush is our Akon
I was in the 6th grade. Our science class/lab was on the 6th floor and I attended school in NYC. Vividly watched in terror when the planes crashed into the towers. Changed my life forever. God Bless America.
wait, what? I thought people normally say "I don't get it" when somebody's joking?
I was in 4th grade, at a private school with no televisions. The administration refrained from telling us anything and finally on the way back home my mom took us out for some food and told us at the restaurant. I don't remember much, but I do distinctively remember watching the news and seeing a clip of arabs burning American flags, chanting and cheering in the middle east. I know the media aired it on purpose, but that shit pissed me off-still pisses me off.
I was in Grade 8 came out of an early morning Basketball practice. Walked into Homeroom and the Teacher had the CFRB1010 (a big radio station here int toronto) playing the horrible news. It was serious for me because I had just started following the news and actually understanding it. It tasteless now but I remember saying to my mom when I got home that night "Mom, Aaliyah (the singer) just died in a plane, now this happens is the world coming to an end?"
I dont post much on here but felt the need to do so on this occasion. I kept it short to illustrate my point. As I said my brother enlisted and the effect it had on my family (and is still having) is profound.
.
I was in school in London at the time of the attacks. It was a miserable day so I remember it quite well. Not much incident on the day as most of us discovered the news once we got home. However, next day I got into with a few guys about it, my teacher almost joined me, he was so pissed when one student asked whether we had saw the coverage and then promptly asked whether it was deserved and speculated where the next attack may be. Ashamed to say he was a friend of a friend.
Another extreme reaction. Clearly that guy was an idiot but you punching him out or whatever achieved nothing. And some idiot afforded this 'story' a silver banana too. Well done.
omg an ex Force Recon Marine got pissed off when he witnessed all of those innocent people he was willing to give his life for dying on live TV? SpanishBuzz must be better than him.
I didnt expect anyone to understand here. I am extremely grateful to him and anyone else willing to die to preserve our safety but I was just illustrating the fact that he acted in that manner probably affected many of his students in the wrong way.
I'm not better then him, far from it actually.
You said that hot headed assholes like him are what cost our country a lot of our brave men and women... if that's not acting above someone, I don't know what is. Chances are this guy has helped to save a lot of the lives of our brave men and women. You can't be an unprofessional moron and last too long in Force Recon.
"I didn't expect anybody here to understand"... arrogant as shit. I get what you're saying, but you went a lil overboard.
I'm not sure but you're reading way too much into what I spoke of. I'm not acting above anyone. I'm a simple girl from CT. Look, I simply commented because I have history and actually know what I'm saying. I dont know for certain but perhaps some of you have never witnessed what enlisting does, the effect it has, on family, on the soldier itself. My point was the teacher ought to know that. I respect him immensely for what he has done but my point was anyone who has witnessed the issues at hand would certainly keep it from young people who have no interest in that. Perhaps most of the students like Happy looked up to the teacher and his reaction to and failure to control his anger perhaps led others to feel anger about it too. Which is fine but whose to say how it manifested. Race attacks grew tenfold after that and I would imagine kids in schools were fearing for their lives with misplaced anger. Again, not saying this all happened because one professor caused it and perhaps I'm being overtly critical but the points there to be made. Its a shame no one felt the need to do so because it was not 'cool' to do so or whatever. OK, you understand what I'm saying which is great but my point was that the macho facade of banking professionals, which are primary users of this site, would consider a little treacherous for my thoughts. Which is OK too. So I guess, my little sermon is over.
I'm sure, in hindsight, he would admmit that he handled it poorly but, again, for the tenth time, that analysis was not part of the question at hand.
I never said it was. I provided the analysis. I only ms the thought behind his actions and not you per se for providing (although it becomes one and the same) so I apologise for that. I wanted to be honest and provide an assessment for why I felt the story, again no issue with you telling it, was a little out there.
Case in point being someone gave you a silver banana. Your post was neither fact or commentary or an opinion. It was a critique of my use of the system. Obviously some idiot appreciated it an gave you a silver banana.
Your point was very well made and supplemented by the silver banana. The system's integrity is in tact. Idiot.
sorry to keep coming after you, but where does it say he punched him out or even went after him physically? can we please leave the preaching somewhere else?
I was actually on a commercial jet that day and in the air during the time of the attacks. The news didn't come to us until a bit later.
That post about how the system of MS/SB is used made me chuckle primarily as it's complete bullshit.
It's not bullsht. It's simply moronic to throw monkey shit at somone for recounting a story, and to admit to doing so because you disagreed with the actions of the person...in the story...not the story teller...
This was during my university days in a European city.
I was at home getting ready to meet a few friends later that afternoon when the attack happened. I took a taxi soon afterwards. The driver was an older guy who had served with the UNIFIL in Southern Lebanon in the 70s/early 80s. We talked middle east politics a bit and I asked him what he thought the consequences of the attacks would be? He said the only certainty is that there will be more violence and innocent people dying. At the time I thought it was just a throwaway statement.
At my friend's place people were constantly flipping between news channels trying to gather a bit of extra info with others on their phones attempting to contact their loved ones in NYC. Thankfully they were safe. A couple of my business/finance classmates smoked on the balcony discussing what the attacks would mean for the economy and investments; That was the first time I thought of our "field of study" as vulgar.
Sitting in that posh apartment, in that posh neighborhood with my posh friends I felt detached. Both from my friends and from the world of conflict the taxi driver had talked about. It was disturbing...
"...He was on the phone 30 seconds after the Challenger blew up selling NASA stocks short."
I don't know how I feel about talking about the effects of the economy or investments after something like that. On one hand, it seems callous but on the other, it seems like something you should be able to do (or at least think about) when something like that goes on if you're in investing/trading.
Weekend Wars: 9/11 vs. Today (Originally Posted: 09/11/2011)
Today is the first major milestone anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It was an event that changed the history of the United States and the world, a decade ago. I recall going for coffee at a spot by my then girlfriend's house in Westchester and finding the place empty, certainly odd for a Tuesday morning. Hours later when I would make the mistake of trying to drive into Manhattan, I would wind up leaving my car in the middle of FDR drive and going to a nearby friend's place to watch the coverage on television. When I came back to my ride it was still there as the entire city and seemingly all of our lives in and around it came to a complete standstill.
That's how crazy it was and with the constant inflow/outflow of NYC's residential demographics, you won't find a ton of people today who can relate to the aforementioned scenario. This is why you have been blitzed by so much media coverage about 9/11 and this is why it is good to listen up and thank your lucky stars that you were not there. Regardless of your personal politics, the people who lost their lives on that day were innocent and deserve our love, respect and admiration. Wall Street changed forever on that day, as well. Hordes of giddy analysts and associates who had used their first year bonuses as down payments on nearby bachelor pads got very much the opposite of what they had hoped for. The area which would become known as Ground Zero went from one of the most desirable residential locations in Manhattan to the place everyone wanted to evacuate. Still do this day many people don't understand how 9/11 changed America and the world. Whether it is mentioned in the news, in political debates or global market analytics, the aftershocks are still there. They are embedded in our minds, hidden behind some subconscious crevice which allows us to go about our daily business.
A great example of heroic action on that day comes in shape of the memory of Col. Richard C. Rescorla. The former U.S. Army Colonel had served in Vietnam and was the director of Morgan Stanley's security team on 9/11. He had previously been witness to the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center, while working for Dean Witter. He was constantly airing his grievances about the Twin Towers' shortage of security. He constantly kept the people of Morgan Stanley prepped and ready for an emergency situation.
When the situation did come, Rick was ready. More than 2,500 of the Morgan Stanley employees in the tower got out alive. Rick was not one of them, he was one of the 13 who perished that day. With all the daily discussions we have about prestige, hot chicks, dope cars, mega exit opps and a bunch of other vapid shit that doesn't matter it is good to think about people like Colonel Rick. It is people like these who are the reason we get to enjoy the good stuff in life. Sorry...it ain't your fucking internships and networking abilities.
Today is a day to remember just how fortunate we really are. Today is a day to be thankful. Today is a day to realize precisely why we can never allow ourselves to forget September 11th.
You're a good writer.
This year is the first that I am away from New York on 9/11. I wish I were back.
I will never forget. Still get emotional thinking about it. We need more Americans like Col Rick. He is what a true hero looks like. God speed to all that lost their lives that day.
Great article.
9/11 for the people who were alive to experience it will never forget it. Just thinking about it right now and I can remember vividly on my first day to school in third grade watching the Twin Towers falling. I think the former President, W., puts it best for us from the 9/11 Interview on National Geographic:
"Eventually September 11th will be a date on the calendar like Pearl Harbor Day, but for those that lived through it, it'll be a day we'll never forget."
“One of the lessons of 9-11 is that evil is real and so is courage." -GWB
I remember being in Middle school and everyone in the school (it was a small private school of like 40 people) huddled around a small, analog television in one of the trailers. One of the students had to hold the antennas to get a clear picture. I vividly remember seeing the second plane hit the WTC, and thinking how my father's firm (which he didn't work at anymore, but all his coworkers were at) were between 98-105 on WTC2. How I had been there less than a month before to meet all these people who were, presumably dead now. I also remember how my parents looked a the New York Times for the next month, looking for their dead friends.
No one in my immediate family died on 9/11- a few did escape through some miraculous events. My uncle had been late to work because he was taking his daughter to school. One of my cousins worked there, and was late, and was in the lobby when the building was hit and the elevators crashed down. Crazy stuff...I can't imagine how those who lost immediate family members must feel every year when this goes on.
Also, I have always found this story amazing...
New York Magazine: Stairwell A: The Only Way Out
CTV: A Miraculous Descent
There are so many Youtube videos about 9/11 but it's far too depressing to watch any. I did watch one a few years ago where a guy in the tower was on the phone wil 911 when the tower collapsed. Tragic stuff.
I was in middle school as well and could still direct you to the desk where I sat when I watched it.
Sad to see that I can barely find a nice article without it bashing Bush.
I watched World Trade Center again, and all I could think about was "For One Day Longer". Also, it's scary how much the world has changed since then, and I struggle to think of any improvements besides my iPhone.
Good writeup. Well done, friend.
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