9/11 It’s Time to Go Onward:

[popgun]

I don’t expect to win any popularity contest with this soliloquy, but I think what I have to say needs to be said.
You won’t hear it on the news, and you certainly won’t hear anyone in politics speak of it.

It is time to go onward.

The terrorists that hit our Nation on September 11, 2001 started a war on terror, and they are winning.
They are winning because their original plan was to hurt as many Americans, (or infidels in their viewpoint), as possible in one homeland attack on American soil.
They did, and America wept.
They are winning because their original plan was to disrupt the American way of life, and cause as much economical, sociological, and psychological, damage to the American public as they thought was possible in one horrific day.
They did, and Americans trembled.
They are winning because their purpose was to further divide the voices of America.
Their purpose was fulfilled and Americans argue.
They are winning because their purpose was to divide our military forces into many action locations, and attempt to sway the Americans at home to protest our government placing our loved ones in harms way.
Their purpose was fulfilled and Americans are confused.
They are winning because they have nothing to loose.
Americans worry.
How can we turn this around?

Every year on December 7th a memorial is held at Pearl Harbor to honor those soldiers and sailors who gave their lives on one horrific day.
Every year, we Americans meet at Arlington National Cemetery, and other military cemeteries around this nation to show honor to our fallen military.
Every year, we Americans pay tribute to our veterans and active military.
I certainly do not think we should stop these practices.
These are the days that our nation can show the unity that holds us together.

But the tributes held in New York and around the nation every year on September 11th are feeding the terrorists exactly what they need to keep going strong.
Remember that this is not a conventional war.
When we stop televising regular programming and replace it with hours of live coverage of the 9/11 tributes, we are feeding the enemy.
When our media focuses on the poor families that are still in sorrow for their lost loved ones, we are feeding the enemy.
Our enemy, in this war on terrorism, feeds on our sorrow, grief, agony, and tears.

This is not a conventional war.
This war is not over boundaries, State’s rights or freedom of the oppressed.
This war is not over defending our allies, honor, or oil.
This war is over hate.
The terrorists hate us.
They hate what we stand for.
They hate what we have accomplished.
They hate us for being who we are.
We will not win this war with negotiations.

We will win this war by killing the terrorists.
We will win this war by going onward.

We need to celebrate the lives of each and every person who perished on that horrific day in 2001, and try to stop mourning the loss on national television.
The families of those who did not survive 9/11 need to mourn in private, and start living their lives again.
They need to take that 4-6 million dollars that was given to each family and live the lives that the enemy hates.
The rest of us need to pull ourselves up by our bootstraps and get back to work.
There were a lot more losses in WWI or WWII than we have suffered during this war on terror.
Our fathers and grandfathers lost more of their fathers, brothers, friends, and kinfolks than most of us can even imagine.
We are today what we are today, because our forefathers did not languish in their losses, but realized that their losses made them stronger and more resolved than ever before.

It has been 5 years, and it is time we all go onward.

….popgun

[Gator]

While I usaully don't agree with you, I DO agree with you here. Good post popgun

[slugshooter]

I agree with you popgun. In fact, I remarked today in class to my professor who is a former Marine that served in Vietnam that I felt like having specials and televised tributes every year was getting excessive. Not to take away from the lives lost or the sacrifices going on everyday as a result of 9/11, but 5 years later it seems like all it is now is trying to bring up the past and get higher TV ratings. Everyone knows what happened, and who did it. I can understand a year later, and even two years later, but I don't need to see retrospectives for a week on what happened, and I don't really think everyone else does either. Let the dead rest in peace, and let the families get on with their lives. Eventually, all this will accomplish is reopening a horrible time in the lives of the families that they would probably like to close.

Never forget, but don't exploit.

[Swamphunter]

I did not think I was going to agree with this post when I first started reading it because I thought it was going to be an anti war/ just get over it type post. After reading it though I do not feel we should totally and completely not show grieving families, I do agree that it feeds the people that hate us. You must remember though that it is not the grieving families that have the ability to air themselves on TV, it is the media that once again sensationalizes this for ratings. I think moving on should be a nice day of remembrance and people going back to their day to day living to show those people that yeah, they may have rattled us on the outside, but its our core that will never be broken. The day also remind us that thousands of men and women, continue to put their lives on the line fighting for our freedom in one way or another. I fly a flag in front of my house on ALL the days, not just holidays, to signify our freedom and support for those fighting to preserve it.

[wtnhunt]

Honestly have mixed thoughts on your post here popgun. I do agree with you that the enemy feeds on the sorrow of those who lost loved ones and more so on fear stricken into people.

I dont think we can not listen to those who wish to share their stories on the anniversary of that day. Not all the stories the media was airing were solely of sorrow, heard a lot of stories of courageous and heroic actions by many Amercian people, dont think that in any way feeds into what the terrorists are thriving on. So in a sense the media was also carrying mixed messages in a way to the terrorists as some seemed, at least from the coverage I caught part of, to almost to be celebrating the life of their lost loved ones and moving on.

Some people will never get over the fears of the what ifs after we had such a horrific wake up call, that is something that unfortunately will take a very long time to overcome if ever, ignoring feelings wont make them go away, and some people need that day of remembrance. In some aspects I think really we have overcome some of what they tried to accomplish, where in others like you mention we are quite obviously failing.

[ParrotHead]

Well - if you took the "onward" pass on this topic then you have to realize that Americans are the forgetful type as can be seen today, just a short 5 years later. If we are not reminded of the horrors that can happen we will become complacent and subject for it to all happen again.

[johnf]

We need to remember, we don't need to dwell.

Good post popgun.

[generallee]

I to have mixed emotions regarding the post. I agree with many of the points you make, but also feel that in some way, these powerful images that retell the events of 9/11 refuel the fire inside many Americans who are beginning to forget why we are fighting. I never strayed away from the reason we fight, and it only made me more angry at the terrorists. But i see where your coming from, and i also believe families should be able to grieve over there lost love ones in private. There will always be memorials for the rest of our lives, but hopefully in years to come, perhaps there wont be quite the media coverage showing grieving families. Good post.

[Texan_Til_I_Die]

[ QUOTE ]
This is not a conventional war.
....This war is over hate.
The terrorists hate us.
...
We will not win this war with negotiations.
...
We will win this war by killing the terrorists.
We will win this war by going onward.


[/ QUOTE ]

There it is in a nutshell folks. They have pledged, sworn, vowed, promised, and declared that they will not stop killing non-Muslims until EVERY non-Muslim is either dead, enslaved, or converted to their particular brand of Islam. That means men, women, children, everyone! And I for one believe them.

The only way this war ends is with us dead, or with them dead. They will never surrender or change. Will we?

[stevebeilgard]

i think tex has this right

[Shaun_300]

[ QUOTE ]
We need to remember, we don't need to dwell.

Good post popgun.

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree 100%!