September 11 2001 is a day that no one of cognizant memory will ever forget. We are reminded annually, on Patriot Day (as it is now called), of the impact that a small group of zealots had upon a larger group of citizens. We live in a world constantly at war, however, not in nearly 60 years had that war’s impact been felt so deeply upon American soil. A second day of infamy, if you will, a day that I will be able to tell my grandchildren about, as my grandfather told me regarding Pearl Harbor. While there will be countless memorials today, regarding the events of that fateful day, I am choosing to go in another direction … to look at what has happened to our country since then. Let’s get reflective, shall we?
After 9/11, we, as a nation, mourned the tragic events in New York City, Washington DC and rural Pennsylvania. We united as one nation and stood tall in the face of adversity; just as our grandparents had done in 1941. We, as a nation, stood and said “this aggression will not stand!” A new wave of American patriotism swept across the land, bringing with it hope, unity, and a new inherent fear of anyone who might resemble someone of Muslim descent. Unprecedented changes were made in light of the “new American world view” that we had. For better or for worse, we were united in payback and united as a nation, to move forward and work together … my how times have changed.
It is 2012, an election year in the United States … we see the nation (partially) pitted in liberal vs. conservative over who has the better direction in running this country. The incumbent president, who achieved what his predecessor set out to do (killing the “mastermind” at the heart of the attacks American soil) against a challenger who has attempted to be the conservative candidate more than once … and failed more than once. But at the heart of it all is the fervent opposition to each other that the candidates and their supporters show towards each other. Gone are the days when two candidates might debate their differences to let the public decide who is better fit to take the job … replaced by bile, lies, and near hatred directed towards each other’s policies and beliefs.
Where has the love, the cooperation gone? The brotherhood that one American felt for another has been replaced (multiple times) by direct opposition and a willingness to undermine another’s ideals and beliefs. When did we really decide that we cannot work together? Look at the last 4-6 years in congress … the Democrat controlled congress sought to undermine Bush II’s policies and work, while the Republican controlled congress (from the “revolution” of 2010) has done everything in its power to force President Obama to submit and alter his own party’s ideals. Instead of working together for the ideals of their constituents, for the betterment of their people, we are left with a government full of selfish, backbiting individuals out for their own ideals, willing to undermine someone else to get that fresh step forward. Gone is the brotherhood that we once felt.
We are so focused on the words “Never Forget” regarding the atrocities of losses occurred on September 11, 2001, that we have forgotten what came in the fallout. “Never Forget” those lost … and “Never Forget” how we, a melting pot nation, came together and stood as one – brothers and sisters looking past race, past wealth, past sexuality, past our individual differences to work together as one. Never forget what has been done, and what we can do when we work together. Never forget that we are all humans, citizens of the planet earth, and we are capable of incredible good, when we aren’t knocking each other down to get ahead.
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