It seems like yesterday that I watched in horror as the airplane carrying an untold number of innocents slammed into the second tower in Manhattan. Our daughter and husband were visiting us and we simply sat in silence as the magnitude of what we were witnessing began to be felt and understood.
As that fateful day continued to unfold, we were made aware that our lives had changed...and probably would never again be what they had been before. We prayed for those who had lost their lives and for those who were tasked with defending us from more of the same.
We were hungry for more news although it was all the same. There were no immediate answers. There was a near immediate resolve of virtually the entire country. We would not stand for this attack on the 'homeland' and we would find those responsible and bring them to justice. 'Justice' was likely being defined very differently from person to person that day and during the days that followed.
We saw the political posturing as all our elected officials seemed to want to be standing on, and counted as being on, the 'correct' side of this issue. How quickly that political resolve seemed to fall by the wayside. How quickly the positions began to alter to more of the same old 'politics'. How quickly the finger pointing commenced. How sad that was and is.
The New York City Police Commissioner said, this morning, that there had been six major attacks averted in New York City since that fateful day. We have seen nothing remotely similar in the 'homeland' since and yet we each, I suspect, will not be surprised to again find ourselves riveted to the television screen watching something like this at sometime in our future.
We have been "safe" since that day. Different people ascribe that to different reasons. Unfortunately, this has turned into the classic political football that many of us feared would be the case. Everyone wants to take credit for no repeat of that day, but too many want all this safety to come at no cost from a social perspective. Guantanamo should be kept. Guantanamo should be bulldozed. Troops should be added to Afghanistan. Troops should all be brought home now. Telephone tapping should be permissible with little oversight. Telephone tapping should be prohibited until multiple judicial jurisdictions can be involved.
Considering that we are in the 'Presidential' election season, I am frankly surprised that neither side has seemed to want to own this issue. I am surprised that we, the people, have lost track of those feelings we had seven years ago this morning. I am, as you might've surmised, a hawk in terms of defense. I've spent many years in the military and believe that we must enforce our rights in this world in order to preserve our rights in this world. Witness Russia and its two bombers that just landed in Venezuela yesterday. As soon as we drop our guard, we become highly vulnerable.
