Five years ago, the world witnessed a horrific event. A small band of fanatics killed thousands of innocent U.S. citizens and truly struck terror into the hearts of the rest of us. The many and varied remembrances earlier this week, on the fifth anniversary of “nine-eleven,” brought that tragedy before us again, and we’re glad of that, for the nation that was panicked in 2001 has become, well, complacent.
Yes, we saw surreal scenes on the TV then, over and over, and tried to understand just what they meant. We convinced ourselves that danger was imminent here, as well, stocking up on face masks and duct tape, bottled water and canned food. We kept the car gassed and thought, “Where can we go, when disaster strikes us?”
But somehow, the regularity of our daily lives returned, and the enormity of the first attack on U.S. soil in two generations diminished in our eyes. Eyes that had since watched hundreds of other crimes and other attacks, all manufactured “entertainment,” on the very same TV. Eyes that watch, on the same TV, nightly tragedies on the news. Eyes that watched Katrina land and create more stories of human tragedy. Has 9/11 became tougher to remember, as we have become desensitized to its impact?
How sad, if true! How disrespectful to the brave men and women who attended the needs of their fellows that day, and who have answered our government’s subsequent call to arms. We must never forget them, especially those who have fallen in that service. Why not declare September 11 to be Remembrance Day?
How should we, as a nation, have responded to the attack? Not the way we have, it’s safe to say. Sure, hindsight is always good, but what ARE we doing in Iraq? Can a democracy be decreed into being? We believe all people long to be free, and have that human right, but self-government is a learned skill (one we’re still learning, ourselves).
Is there a solution to the growing tensions around the globe? Events in Palestine suggest not, frankly, either diplomatic or military. Just as Joshua created Israel on land taken from the Canaanites some 3,500 years ago, so was Israel, in 1948, re-established on Palestinian land. Israel swears it will survive, and its Islamist neighbors swear they will annihilate it. How can a cease-fire ever last, when it does not cease the hatred and fear? And how can those emotions ever cease, when they have become a very part of the nations’ souls?
Joan Huguenard struggles with these issues, too. She has seen the people in that land. She has witnessed abuse of power at the lowest levels, and bemoans it at the highest levels. We thank our readers for your comments about her column, running about 50-50 between those supporting our willingness to carry it and those calling for her dismissal. Of course, no columnist necessarily represents the opinion of the paper itself. But what just joan does represent, apparently, is the opinion of a large number of folks here in the Valley. Is she anti-Semitic? No — if we thought so, we wouldn’t carry the column. We want the Sun to reflect and inspire our local community; racial prejudice does neither.
But you can certainly argue otherwise. If you send a letter, we’ll print it. If you lay out a cogent column, we’ll run it. We celebrate the tolerance in this country for divergent opinions, and the free press in which they can be expressed.
Let Remembrance Day be a permanent holiday to honor the civilians and emergency service personnel who lost their lives in that fateful attack five years ago. Let it be a day to instill anew the sense of pride in our nation that we felt in the ensuing days. Let it be a day to honor those of our young people who have given their lives in the continuing effort to secure our freedoms. And let it be a day to remember, and to show the world, how tolerance and generosity can build a free society.
