Do we still care about a Sept. 11 observance?
By
Rory Ryan-hcpress@cinci.rr.com
Do you recall where you were on the morning of September 11, 2001? Perhaps a better question, for some, is this: Do you even care?
A generation ago, as each November rolled around, Americans often reflected on where they were when President Kennedy was assassinated. Or when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. Or when Bobby Kennedy was assassinated.
Two or three generations ago, as each Dec. 7 approached, Americans thought of Pearl Harbor. My good friend Clyde Pidcock can put that day – and that war – into a perspective that ought to be required reading in every school in America. Clyde lived through it – and was a witness to the atrocities of wartime acts of torture committed against America’s sons.
Born in 1918 and a U.S. Navy veteran of World War II, Clyde will be 93 on Sept. 17. He is a great American. I know he remembers Pearl Harbor and the aforementioned political assassinations. He remembers September 11, 2001, too.
Do you?
Almost 3,000 Americans were killed 10 years ago this Sunday. But for all intents and purposes, many of us are all too content to carry on as if nothing happened. After the first anniversary, the national media made a concerted effort to “downplay” the anniversary. (And, please, don’t challenge me on this. I have saved virtually every unreasonable media industry email and memo I’ve ever received, including this one. Got a few backup copies, too.)
Pastor Shane Montgomery organizes a local 9/11 observance. This year’s event will be from noon-2 p.m. Sunday outside the Highland County Courthouse. Pastor Montgomery tells me the community doesn’t seem interested in attending a Sept. 11 commemoration.
That’s unfortunate. Because we ought to remember the date Sept. 11, 2001 for the rest of our lives. In fact, we’d better remember. As we learned Thursday, just prior to the president's prime-time speech, there is credible evidence that terrorists have planned to kill more Americans on the 10-year anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001. It's hardly a surprise.
These 9/11 terrorist attacks – which had been in the works for more than a year – claimed approximately 3,000 American lives. By comparison, the Japanese attacks at Pearl Harbor killed 2,403 Americans. Unlike Dec. 7, 1941, however, the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 were not part of any wartime campaign against a potential military foe. This was an unprecedented act of violence against innocent, unarmed, defenseless civilians.
The perpetrators of such a despicable act are not worthy of inclusion in the human race. They should be eradicated like rabid dogs. And many of them, courtesy of the U.S. Armed Forces, have been.
In a column on the initial aftermath of Sept. 11, I wrote:
Much has happened since those terrible attacks. And much of what has since transpired has been good.
Consider:
• Since Sept. 11, Americans have contributed in record numbers to the Red Cross and other relief efforts. Americans have given blood. We have given money. We have extended our prayers.
• There is a newfound pride among all Americans. Communities in all 50 states held prayer services. Governors across the United States have pledged their states’ resources to assist in any way possible. Flags fly constantly. The American spirit has been rekindled.
• The usually partisan Congress demonstrated its unity in support of the president. The Senate voted 98-0 to pass a resolution authorizing President Bush to use “all necessary and appropriate force” against those responsible for planning, executing or aiding the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
• In the House of Representatives, Congress voted “to authorize the use of U.S. Armed Forces against those responsible for the recent attacks launched against the United States.” It passed by a 420-1 vote. (California Democrat Barbara Lee was the lone “no” vote.)
Please, take a moment and think about this.
United States senators voted unanimously to authorize “all necessary and appropriate force” against those responsible for planning, executing or aiding the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. And the House of Representatives voted 420-1 to do the same.
I can’t help but wonder how those votes would add up today, in this adversarial political climate.
Ten years ago, we had special prayer observances and church services devoted to those fallen Americans on Sept. 11.
In Adams County, where I was working at that time, more than 100 of us joined hands in prayer outside the Adams County Courthouse in tribute to the victims and the families of our fallen brothers.
The late Dr. Walter Knauff of West Union, citing the famous “Footprints in the Sand” poem, said: “God is with us here today. He has picked us up. If we stay with God, we can make it.”
We call on God’s strength and wisdom and compassion now more than ever. America is great because of America’s faith in God and her courage to be right and just. Sometimes we forget this, and it often takes a tragic event to remind us how blessed we are to live in the Greatest Country in the world.
There will be a 10th anniversary commemoration on the terrorist attacks from noon-2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 11 on the Highland County Courthouse lawn.
Shane Montgomery, pastor of the Grace Bible Church in Hillsboro, is the county coordinator, in conjunction with the Awakening America Alliance. The alliance is a “cooperative initiative within the body of Christ to increase awareness of the deep spiritual need in today’s America and to pursue a new Christ awakening in our nation that will impact our world,” according its website, www.awakeningamerica.us.
According to Pastor Montgomery, last year approximately 30 Ohio counties held observances on Sept. 11. “We would like to see all 88 counties in Ohio participate,” he said.
As I said, earlier this week Pastor Montgomery told me that the invitations to the Sept. 11 memorial have, for the most part, gone unanswered. That’s too bad. To be honest, it’s a damned shame.
Many Americans love to talk of our independence. That feeling of independence is one of our great virtues. We are – or once were – an independent people – but united in defense of that independence. Now is the time for that unity. Is it too much to pause for a moment of reflection on the 10-year anniversary of one of the most devastating attacks against our blessed nation?
A decade ago, I shared with readers that much of the world will forget that it was America who lifted countries from oppression and assisted in times of tragedy. Never mind their short memories.
We now have an obligation to support our country – as one nation under God. Just as the Alvin Yorks and Audie Murphys and Paul Tibbetses demonstrated their patriotism and heroism in previous generations, we will have many of today’s military families rise to the challenge.
On the Monday night after Sept. 11, popular late night television show host David Letterman stressed the need for Americans to be courageous. Whether you are courageous or you just act courageous doesn’t really matter, Letterman said. Paraphrasing Winston Churchill, Letterman said, “Courage, as you might know, defines all other human behavior,” Letterman told us. “It is courage and faith that got us through two World Wars, Korea, Vietnam, the Persian Gulf. It is courage and faith that will get America through the war on terrorism.”
The community is invited to the 10-year anniversary service at noon Sunday at the Highland County Courthouse. If you can be there, that’s wonderful. If you can’t, please observe a moment of silence in respect for those lives lost on Sept. 11, 2001. You’ll be glad you did.
Rory Ryan is publisher and editor of The Highland County Press.[[In-content Ad]]
A generation ago, as each November rolled around, Americans often reflected on where they were when President Kennedy was assassinated. Or when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. Or when Bobby Kennedy was assassinated.
Two or three generations ago, as each Dec. 7 approached, Americans thought of Pearl Harbor. My good friend Clyde Pidcock can put that day – and that war – into a perspective that ought to be required reading in every school in America. Clyde lived through it – and was a witness to the atrocities of wartime acts of torture committed against America’s sons.
Born in 1918 and a U.S. Navy veteran of World War II, Clyde will be 93 on Sept. 17. He is a great American. I know he remembers Pearl Harbor and the aforementioned political assassinations. He remembers September 11, 2001, too.
Do you?
Almost 3,000 Americans were killed 10 years ago this Sunday. But for all intents and purposes, many of us are all too content to carry on as if nothing happened. After the first anniversary, the national media made a concerted effort to “downplay” the anniversary. (And, please, don’t challenge me on this. I have saved virtually every unreasonable media industry email and memo I’ve ever received, including this one. Got a few backup copies, too.)
Pastor Shane Montgomery organizes a local 9/11 observance. This year’s event will be from noon-2 p.m. Sunday outside the Highland County Courthouse. Pastor Montgomery tells me the community doesn’t seem interested in attending a Sept. 11 commemoration.
That’s unfortunate. Because we ought to remember the date Sept. 11, 2001 for the rest of our lives. In fact, we’d better remember. As we learned Thursday, just prior to the president's prime-time speech, there is credible evidence that terrorists have planned to kill more Americans on the 10-year anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001. It's hardly a surprise.
These 9/11 terrorist attacks – which had been in the works for more than a year – claimed approximately 3,000 American lives. By comparison, the Japanese attacks at Pearl Harbor killed 2,403 Americans. Unlike Dec. 7, 1941, however, the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 were not part of any wartime campaign against a potential military foe. This was an unprecedented act of violence against innocent, unarmed, defenseless civilians.
The perpetrators of such a despicable act are not worthy of inclusion in the human race. They should be eradicated like rabid dogs. And many of them, courtesy of the U.S. Armed Forces, have been.
In a column on the initial aftermath of Sept. 11, I wrote:
Much has happened since those terrible attacks. And much of what has since transpired has been good.
Consider:
• Since Sept. 11, Americans have contributed in record numbers to the Red Cross and other relief efforts. Americans have given blood. We have given money. We have extended our prayers.
• There is a newfound pride among all Americans. Communities in all 50 states held prayer services. Governors across the United States have pledged their states’ resources to assist in any way possible. Flags fly constantly. The American spirit has been rekindled.
• The usually partisan Congress demonstrated its unity in support of the president. The Senate voted 98-0 to pass a resolution authorizing President Bush to use “all necessary and appropriate force” against those responsible for planning, executing or aiding the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
• In the House of Representatives, Congress voted “to authorize the use of U.S. Armed Forces against those responsible for the recent attacks launched against the United States.” It passed by a 420-1 vote. (California Democrat Barbara Lee was the lone “no” vote.)
Please, take a moment and think about this.
United States senators voted unanimously to authorize “all necessary and appropriate force” against those responsible for planning, executing or aiding the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. And the House of Representatives voted 420-1 to do the same.
I can’t help but wonder how those votes would add up today, in this adversarial political climate.
Ten years ago, we had special prayer observances and church services devoted to those fallen Americans on Sept. 11.
In Adams County, where I was working at that time, more than 100 of us joined hands in prayer outside the Adams County Courthouse in tribute to the victims and the families of our fallen brothers.
The late Dr. Walter Knauff of West Union, citing the famous “Footprints in the Sand” poem, said: “God is with us here today. He has picked us up. If we stay with God, we can make it.”
We call on God’s strength and wisdom and compassion now more than ever. America is great because of America’s faith in God and her courage to be right and just. Sometimes we forget this, and it often takes a tragic event to remind us how blessed we are to live in the Greatest Country in the world.
There will be a 10th anniversary commemoration on the terrorist attacks from noon-2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 11 on the Highland County Courthouse lawn.
Shane Montgomery, pastor of the Grace Bible Church in Hillsboro, is the county coordinator, in conjunction with the Awakening America Alliance. The alliance is a “cooperative initiative within the body of Christ to increase awareness of the deep spiritual need in today’s America and to pursue a new Christ awakening in our nation that will impact our world,” according its website, www.awakeningamerica.us.
According to Pastor Montgomery, last year approximately 30 Ohio counties held observances on Sept. 11. “We would like to see all 88 counties in Ohio participate,” he said.
As I said, earlier this week Pastor Montgomery told me that the invitations to the Sept. 11 memorial have, for the most part, gone unanswered. That’s too bad. To be honest, it’s a damned shame.
Many Americans love to talk of our independence. That feeling of independence is one of our great virtues. We are – or once were – an independent people – but united in defense of that independence. Now is the time for that unity. Is it too much to pause for a moment of reflection on the 10-year anniversary of one of the most devastating attacks against our blessed nation?
A decade ago, I shared with readers that much of the world will forget that it was America who lifted countries from oppression and assisted in times of tragedy. Never mind their short memories.
We now have an obligation to support our country – as one nation under God. Just as the Alvin Yorks and Audie Murphys and Paul Tibbetses demonstrated their patriotism and heroism in previous generations, we will have many of today’s military families rise to the challenge.
On the Monday night after Sept. 11, popular late night television show host David Letterman stressed the need for Americans to be courageous. Whether you are courageous or you just act courageous doesn’t really matter, Letterman said. Paraphrasing Winston Churchill, Letterman said, “Courage, as you might know, defines all other human behavior,” Letterman told us. “It is courage and faith that got us through two World Wars, Korea, Vietnam, the Persian Gulf. It is courage and faith that will get America through the war on terrorism.”
The community is invited to the 10-year anniversary service at noon Sunday at the Highland County Courthouse. If you can be there, that’s wonderful. If you can’t, please observe a moment of silence in respect for those lives lost on Sept. 11, 2001. You’ll be glad you did.
Rory Ryan is publisher and editor of The Highland County Press.[[In-content Ad]]