On a Sunny Tuesday Morning...

To tell the truth, as I sit here in my computer, looking at the screen I don't know what to write. This is the sixth anniversary of the attacks on my city and my people. What makes this day even more significant is the fact, that like that September morning, today is once again Tuesday September 11, only six years removed. It is perhaps fitting that today, unlike that other Tuesday morning is dark, cloudy and raining, almost as if the day is mourning that sunny Tuesday morning from six years ago. Just like last year, I turned to MSNBC for their replay of the events from that day from the first plane strike at 8:46 am to the second at 9:03 am. Viewing the tape once again, brought all those feelings back, the pain and the anger of seeing my city attacked. After that I had to leave home and I edit this entry on my way to work, remembering that even more was still to come.

I won't re-recount the events of that day as I remember them, I did that last year and see no point in re-writing that which has already been written. This is the sixth anniversary of those heinous attacks, but only my third commemorating them on this blog. Still, it seems like much of what I wanted to say I've already written, and all that remains is to remember and pay our respects to the casualties of that fateful day.

Not only to them, but also, as I noted in last year's post

to the families of those people who lost loved ones in the attacks, the first responders who have died since and those who are currently suffering as a result of the dust they inhaled while cleaning up the World Trade Center area searching for survivors and the bodies of those who did not make it out...to the families of the many soldiers currently serving overseas, those who have been wounded, and those who've paid the ultimate sacrifice,

this day belongs to them.

While the debate over Iraq, and Gen. Petraus' testimony before the Senate will bring the usual partisan hackery, I submit to you that the best way to commemorate this day is avoid the temptation and instead focus on working on realistic solutions to the problems that confront us.

I still remember the unity of that day, and the weeks that followed, we were not Republicans, or Democrats, Red or Blue, we were all Americans. It's been six years, and frankly its about time that we honor the victims of those heinous terrorists attacks in the only way that will do justice to their memory; unify the country, and cease dividing it. It no longer matters who is to blame for this or that, and yes there are many to whom that blame belongs, but that is not important today. Instead, we need to recognize the myriad problems that we face, be they in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Horn of Africa, Pakistan, and recognize that we can't face them divided for long.

It is time for both sides of the political spectrum to give so that we can arrive at a set of policies for addressing all these problems that all of as Americans can accept. That means, that the President and his supporters (the right) need to recognize that just because people don't support the President, it does not mean that they support America's enemies. In like manner, the left and other opponents of the President need to recognize that we do face a lot of problems internationally, 9/11 did happen and it was orchestrated by a group that subscribes to radical Islam. That is, just because you don't like, or perhaps even hate this President, it does not mean that our country does not really face these problems. We do. It's time we start working again as one nation, and put away the partisan slogans of the past six years.

There's a lot of distrust, and bad blood, I'm not saying that there isn't, or that people don't have a right to feel the way they do. In many cases, the administration and its supporters have gone way beyond what is acceptable, but so has the opposition and both sides can cite examples with little trouble. The point is not to assign blame, but to find a way to move forward, if not for us, then for the people who lost their lives six years ago today, and the first responders who risked their health and lost their lives trying to rescue co-workers or their remains. It isn't enough to mention 9/11 and then continue with the same partisan hackery that has characterized the last 6 years. Doing that, dishonors the memory of those we purport to honor this day.

Am I being naive? Probably, I'm an idealist at heart. But at least on this one day, I'd rather hear from the leadership of both parties, and their allies ideas for how to arrive at a compromise that is acceptable to both. After all, we continually talk about reconciliation in Iraq, and yet do little to achieve it here at home. We allow the fringes to dictate the terms of the debate, to set the tone, even as we chastise Iraqis for doing the same. There has to be a better way.

Given today's events in the Senate, and the continued fight over the Iraq war, this is unlikely to happen because at the end of the day our politicians and their hacks on both sides will have too much of an incentive to use this day to make a political point, and not just in the senate, but also in the executive branch; no one, here, is free of sin.

To truly honor those we lost that day, six years ago, today should be like it was that day, when before anything else, we were Americans.

If that seems too hard, then do the next best thing, and honor those we lost that sunny Tuesday morning, and those we've lost since by committing to doing a good deed today. This link is to MyGoodDeed.org which was founded as a means of turning the tragedy of 9/11 into something positive. Apart from ending the partisan gridlock that has become our Achilles heel, I can't think of a better way to honor those who fell that day than by engaging in an act of kindness toward other Americans (or anyone) who may need our help.