One thing people forget: around that time you had several incidents of planes crashing into buildings. Iirc, 1 or 2 of students crashing after flying closer than their experience possibly warranted, 1 guy showing off, and one deliberate crash to be part of an "art installation" project. So like the local talk show host, I thought "another idiot". After the 2nd plane was reported, I thought, "Someone sent in the first string".
Somewhat worried the rest of the day we'd get hit with a truly serious attack against the grid or fuel distribution.
OpsO of a gun squadron on a det to Eglin. Had just briefed a 2v2 w/ some Eagles & saw the second plane as we were walking to the jets... called tower before starting the APU because I was sure our training day was done. F15 guys converted over to full up rounds in about 2 hours. We had to just sit there..... & my GF's (now wife) , a DC based flight attendant, birthday is Sep 11. Originally was going to take it off but because I was deployed she'd plan to pickup the DC-LA transcon.... AA77. Last minute decided no to. Heard it hit the Pentagon, knew the entire crew.
I was working as a lawyer in Corner Brook, Newfoundland, and just returning from a brief appearance. As I often did, in lieu of doing actual work I checked some news sites and found it strange how many of them seemed to be down. Almost like they were overwhelmed with traffic.
When I finally accessed one, I saw a headline about a plane crashing into the World Trade Center towers. Shortly thereafter, news of a *second* plane hitting the other tower, and I knew the world would never be the same. I went home and turned on the TV just in time to see the second tower collapse, one of these moments where your mind doesn't register that you just let out a horrified scream.
After US air space was closed, many jets were diverted to airports in Newfoundland, most famously Gander International Airport as portrayed in the musical "Come From Away." I finally visited NYC a couple of years later to pay respects to the victims, and to that incredible city, a couple of years later.
I was sleeping in, the wife got up early and she turned on the TV and saw the first plane hit and woke me up I said how could that happen? the time I got to the TV the next plane hit, That's when I said it's a terror attack and then we are now at war with somebody, it was stunning all I could think about was My son who was a Marine and the people who were trapped.
The Visceral hate I had towards Islam and Laden was strong in me.
The thing that really made me mad was the Apologists who like Bill Mayer said the terrorist were braver than Americans, the Bush "religion of Peace" speech.
Twenty years of war and Bin Laden was hiding In Pakistan the whole time and the Government here and there knew where he was.
The JFK assassination of my time. I remember like yesterday. Being woke up by my new wife. Watching the news for a few minutes and thinking "terrorists" before itd even been said. And moments later the horror of it being confirmed when the second plane struck.
Only moments afterwards, my ex called, pleading with me not to reenlist, reading my thoughts pretty well. The rest was a day of numbness and contemplation, later suddenly realizing our busy, noisy street had gone silent and empty. Only once interrupted, by a common sight today- a huge pickup, with a ramshackle pole added, and a huge and beautiful flag flying from it... And the sound of Guard F-15s across town getting airborne on full burner.
Now looking back, I wonder...was the whole GWOT worth it?? Was it right or wrong? Could it have been done different?? I mean, we havent had another 9/11... But was what we did worth all those kids lives?? Did it make a lasting difference? Don't misunderstand, im all for treating and disposing of terrorists like the vermin they are... But, Im not really sure either way. All i know is that if id of been C-in-C back then, Id of likely handled it more like how the President wanted to in the Clancy novel, global opinion be damned...
Seems like just yesterday, I was 50 years old, working as a civilian in DC. Girlfriend at the time (now wife) and I worked in the same building, different agencies. I took the DC metro (still running) to Arlington to check on a friend who had been hospitalized the night before.
I was privileged to observe civilian first responders from adjacent localities muster and coordinate at the Pentagon to fight the fire, triage casualties, and move them to local hospitals. They were all excellent, and those Fairfax County guys were amazing!
We watched the Pentagon smolder for the next 2 weeks. My biggest question was how could our superior officers have been so flaccid? They failed to harden/defend their own command post! Might be the saddest example I have ever observed of "do as I say, not as I do," and trust me, I saw many sad examples during 20 years active duty, and the 30+ subsequent years.
We lost some good people that day. Also got to meet a woman who survived Pearl Harbor as a young Army brat. She remembered seeing Honolulu burn. Working at the Pentagon, 60 years later, she survived another sneak attack/failure to defend. Definitely some lucky star shining on her!
I was screened for recall to Active Duty a few years after 9/11. Luck of the draw kept me working in DC. Some of the other men in my age cohort were killed or seriously injured during that cluster drill. War is a young man's game. Even at your physical and mental peak, the enemy has an even chance. As we age, the odds get worse.
My unanswered question since that day is why did we not airstrike the center of Wahhabism/Salafism? We could have quickly/easily/cheaply set them back and kept them quiet for a good long while, with no loss of assets or personnel.
I note with great pleasure that Japan and Germany have been extremely well-behaved ever since they got spanked for acting out. Why did no one in authority have the stones to spank the Saudis?
I was working for a Defense contractor in Alexandria. Was watching the TV i the lobby when the second plane went in. I remarked to the retired Colonel next to me: "We're at war. I don't know who we are at war with, but we're at war." Later we stood on the roof and watched the Pentagon burn. None, of our staff died, but I knew staff in OA22 who did.
Raise a glass to Rick Rescorla today:
"At 8:46 A.M. on the morning of September 11, 2001, American Airlines Flight 11 struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center (WTC 1). Rescorla heard the explosion and saw the tower burning from his office window in the 44th floor of the South Tower (WTC 2). When a Port Authority announcement came over the P.A. system urging people to stay at their desks, and before United Airlines Flight 175 would strike the South Tower at 9:03 A.M., Rescorla ignored the announcement, grabbed his bullhorn, walkie-talkie and cell phone, and began systematically to order the roughly 2,700 Morgan Stanley employees in the South Tower to evacuate, in addition to the employees in WTC 5, numbering around 1,000.
Rescorla had boosted morale among his men in Vietnam by singing Cornish songs from his youth, and now he did the same in the stairwell, singing songs such as one based on the Welsh song "Men of Harlech"
After successfully evacuating almost all of Morgan Stanley's 2,700 employees, he went back into the building. When one of his colleagues told him he too had to evacuate the World Trade Center, Rescorla replied, "As soon as I make sure everyone else is out." He was last seen on the 10th floor of the South Tower, heading upward, shortly before its collapse at 9:59 A.M., 56 minutes after being struck by United Airlines Flight 175. A total of 13 Morgan Stanley employees died in the September 11 attacks, including Rescorla, his deputies Wesley Mercer and Jorge Valezquez, and security guard Godwin Forde, who had collectively stayed behind to help others"
I was a high school kid, Sophomore year. Heard from someone in the hall about the first attack, and disregarded it. The second was announced over the PA in the second hour, and I had a debate class as an elective than year. We had scheduled research that morning, and we were explicitly told by the librarian do not look at the news sites.
That afternoon was American History. We watched a local channel that had an agreement to play CNN, and the teacher was there, stating we were witnessing history as it happened.
I was with two local Surveyors and two men from the National Geodetic Survey measuring a calibration base line at the local airport. We were about two hours in when the local druggist came out to check on his plane and he told us about the attack. We were under the eastern approaches to port Columbus. Earlier there were several contrails over us and we had not been paying attention. All that was above us then was burning blue and we all felt very strange.
I wonder if bin Laden & Co. could have ever imagined how many willing accomplices they would end up finding in Congress, the executive, and our national security apparatus. So many of our rights curtailed, and hard-fought battles won for those we still enjoy.
Woefully mismanaged campaigns waged against the perpetrators that offered heaps of insult and injury to our military members who were tasked with prosecuting it. A slap in the face of the honorable from devious and deceptive "leadership".
RIP to all of their victims. 9/11 is not a day any of us will forget. A national tragedy never allowed to heal.
I was working for a Lighting Company in Pittsburgh. At the time I was finishing up the "as built" drawings for fixtures that were going to be hung in Zig Zag Alley, a mall that ran between the Towers on the Subway level. We thought it was a small plane that hit. We finally got a radio going just as the other plane hit. There were reports of a plane on the ground in Cleveland and another about one that was supposed to hit the USX Tower in Pittsburgh (Flight 93). There was a voluntary evacuation of downtown Pittsburgh, but, I chose to stay where I was at. As I was leaving I looked up at a nearby building that housed Allegheny County's 911 complex I saw men on the roof. One of them was carrying a Stinger MANPADS. As I was crossing the Highland Park Bridge is was like something out of a movie. Usually there's hundreds of cars, but I was the only car on the bridge. I heard a roar, looked up and saw two F-15s flying up the Allegheny River, armed to the teeth. It wasn't until I got home that I saw the video of what happened. About a week later we got the truck back with the uninstalled fixtures. I left the Company a bit after that, so I don't know what happened to them. They were supposed to have opened Zig Zag Alley the following week. We were supposed to have been at the Top O' World restaurant at 9:00 AM September 18th to attend the opening and then to gat an award for fixtures that we designed for JFK Airport.
Tom: Thanks for the history lesson. Maybe you want to educate me on the different sects of Islam. If you know of one that is comfortable with Western ideas please advise.
I've made it my custom for the last decade or so, on this particular anniversary, to go visit a maternity ward...........
One thing people forget: around that time you had several incidents of planes crashing into buildings. Iirc, 1 or 2 of students crashing after flying closer than their experience possibly warranted, 1 guy showing off, and one deliberate crash to be part of an "art installation" project. So like the local talk show host, I thought "another idiot". After the 2nd plane was reported, I thought, "Someone sent in the first string".
Somewhat worried the rest of the day we'd get hit with a truly serious attack against the grid or fuel distribution.
And 22 years later we have what? 5 still at Gitmo and 1 absentee Commander-in-Chief.
OpsO of a gun squadron on a det to Eglin. Had just briefed a 2v2 w/ some Eagles & saw the second plane as we were walking to the jets... called tower before starting the APU because I was sure our training day was done. F15 guys converted over to full up rounds in about 2 hours. We had to just sit there..... & my GF's (now wife) , a DC based flight attendant, birthday is Sep 11. Originally was going to take it off but because I was deployed she'd plan to pickup the DC-LA transcon.... AA77. Last minute decided no to. Heard it hit the Pentagon, knew the entire crew.
I was working as a lawyer in Corner Brook, Newfoundland, and just returning from a brief appearance. As I often did, in lieu of doing actual work I checked some news sites and found it strange how many of them seemed to be down. Almost like they were overwhelmed with traffic.
When I finally accessed one, I saw a headline about a plane crashing into the World Trade Center towers. Shortly thereafter, news of a *second* plane hitting the other tower, and I knew the world would never be the same. I went home and turned on the TV just in time to see the second tower collapse, one of these moments where your mind doesn't register that you just let out a horrified scream.
After US air space was closed, many jets were diverted to airports in Newfoundland, most famously Gander International Airport as portrayed in the musical "Come From Away." I finally visited NYC a couple of years later to pay respects to the victims, and to that incredible city, a couple of years later.
I was sleeping in, the wife got up early and she turned on the TV and saw the first plane hit and woke me up I said how could that happen? the time I got to the TV the next plane hit, That's when I said it's a terror attack and then we are now at war with somebody, it was stunning all I could think about was My son who was a Marine and the people who were trapped.
The Visceral hate I had towards Islam and Laden was strong in me.
The thing that really made me mad was the Apologists who like Bill Mayer said the terrorist were braver than Americans, the Bush "religion of Peace" speech.
Twenty years of war and Bin Laden was hiding In Pakistan the whole time and the Government here and there knew where he was.
Never, Forget.
The JFK assassination of my time. I remember like yesterday. Being woke up by my new wife. Watching the news for a few minutes and thinking "terrorists" before itd even been said. And moments later the horror of it being confirmed when the second plane struck.
Only moments afterwards, my ex called, pleading with me not to reenlist, reading my thoughts pretty well. The rest was a day of numbness and contemplation, later suddenly realizing our busy, noisy street had gone silent and empty. Only once interrupted, by a common sight today- a huge pickup, with a ramshackle pole added, and a huge and beautiful flag flying from it... And the sound of Guard F-15s across town getting airborne on full burner.
Now looking back, I wonder...was the whole GWOT worth it?? Was it right or wrong? Could it have been done different?? I mean, we havent had another 9/11... But was what we did worth all those kids lives?? Did it make a lasting difference? Don't misunderstand, im all for treating and disposing of terrorists like the vermin they are... But, Im not really sure either way. All i know is that if id of been C-in-C back then, Id of likely handled it more like how the President wanted to in the Clancy novel, global opinion be damned...
Seems like just yesterday, I was 50 years old, working as a civilian in DC. Girlfriend at the time (now wife) and I worked in the same building, different agencies. I took the DC metro (still running) to Arlington to check on a friend who had been hospitalized the night before.
I was privileged to observe civilian first responders from adjacent localities muster and coordinate at the Pentagon to fight the fire, triage casualties, and move them to local hospitals. They were all excellent, and those Fairfax County guys were amazing!
We watched the Pentagon smolder for the next 2 weeks. My biggest question was how could our superior officers have been so flaccid? They failed to harden/defend their own command post! Might be the saddest example I have ever observed of "do as I say, not as I do," and trust me, I saw many sad examples during 20 years active duty, and the 30+ subsequent years.
We lost some good people that day. Also got to meet a woman who survived Pearl Harbor as a young Army brat. She remembered seeing Honolulu burn. Working at the Pentagon, 60 years later, she survived another sneak attack/failure to defend. Definitely some lucky star shining on her!
I was screened for recall to Active Duty a few years after 9/11. Luck of the draw kept me working in DC. Some of the other men in my age cohort were killed or seriously injured during that cluster drill. War is a young man's game. Even at your physical and mental peak, the enemy has an even chance. As we age, the odds get worse.
My unanswered question since that day is why did we not airstrike the center of Wahhabism/Salafism? We could have quickly/easily/cheaply set them back and kept them quiet for a good long while, with no loss of assets or personnel.
I note with great pleasure that Japan and Germany have been extremely well-behaved ever since they got spanked for acting out. Why did no one in authority have the stones to spank the Saudis?
I was working for a Defense contractor in Alexandria. Was watching the TV i the lobby when the second plane went in. I remarked to the retired Colonel next to me: "We're at war. I don't know who we are at war with, but we're at war." Later we stood on the roof and watched the Pentagon burn. None, of our staff died, but I knew staff in OA22 who did.
Raise a glass to Rick Rescorla today:
"At 8:46 A.M. on the morning of September 11, 2001, American Airlines Flight 11 struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center (WTC 1). Rescorla heard the explosion and saw the tower burning from his office window in the 44th floor of the South Tower (WTC 2). When a Port Authority announcement came over the P.A. system urging people to stay at their desks, and before United Airlines Flight 175 would strike the South Tower at 9:03 A.M., Rescorla ignored the announcement, grabbed his bullhorn, walkie-talkie and cell phone, and began systematically to order the roughly 2,700 Morgan Stanley employees in the South Tower to evacuate, in addition to the employees in WTC 5, numbering around 1,000.
Rescorla had boosted morale among his men in Vietnam by singing Cornish songs from his youth, and now he did the same in the stairwell, singing songs such as one based on the Welsh song "Men of Harlech"
After successfully evacuating almost all of Morgan Stanley's 2,700 employees, he went back into the building. When one of his colleagues told him he too had to evacuate the World Trade Center, Rescorla replied, "As soon as I make sure everyone else is out." He was last seen on the 10th floor of the South Tower, heading upward, shortly before its collapse at 9:59 A.M., 56 minutes after being struck by United Airlines Flight 175. A total of 13 Morgan Stanley employees died in the September 11 attacks, including Rescorla, his deputies Wesley Mercer and Jorge Valezquez, and security guard Godwin Forde, who had collectively stayed behind to help others"
Real Men
I was a high school kid, Sophomore year. Heard from someone in the hall about the first attack, and disregarded it. The second was announced over the PA in the second hour, and I had a debate class as an elective than year. We had scheduled research that morning, and we were explicitly told by the librarian do not look at the news sites.
That afternoon was American History. We watched a local channel that had an agreement to play CNN, and the teacher was there, stating we were witnessing history as it happened.
I was with two local Surveyors and two men from the National Geodetic Survey measuring a calibration base line at the local airport. We were about two hours in when the local druggist came out to check on his plane and he told us about the attack. We were under the eastern approaches to port Columbus. Earlier there were several contrails over us and we had not been paying attention. All that was above us then was burning blue and we all felt very strange.
We missed the prime message. Moslems hat us AS INDIVIDUALS. The Koran tells them to.
Moslems hate each and every one of us.
I wonder if bin Laden & Co. could have ever imagined how many willing accomplices they would end up finding in Congress, the executive, and our national security apparatus. So many of our rights curtailed, and hard-fought battles won for those we still enjoy.
Woefully mismanaged campaigns waged against the perpetrators that offered heaps of insult and injury to our military members who were tasked with prosecuting it. A slap in the face of the honorable from devious and deceptive "leadership".
RIP to all of their victims. 9/11 is not a day any of us will forget. A national tragedy never allowed to heal.
I was working for a Lighting Company in Pittsburgh. At the time I was finishing up the "as built" drawings for fixtures that were going to be hung in Zig Zag Alley, a mall that ran between the Towers on the Subway level. We thought it was a small plane that hit. We finally got a radio going just as the other plane hit. There were reports of a plane on the ground in Cleveland and another about one that was supposed to hit the USX Tower in Pittsburgh (Flight 93). There was a voluntary evacuation of downtown Pittsburgh, but, I chose to stay where I was at. As I was leaving I looked up at a nearby building that housed Allegheny County's 911 complex I saw men on the roof. One of them was carrying a Stinger MANPADS. As I was crossing the Highland Park Bridge is was like something out of a movie. Usually there's hundreds of cars, but I was the only car on the bridge. I heard a roar, looked up and saw two F-15s flying up the Allegheny River, armed to the teeth. It wasn't until I got home that I saw the video of what happened. About a week later we got the truck back with the uninstalled fixtures. I left the Company a bit after that, so I don't know what happened to them. They were supposed to have opened Zig Zag Alley the following week. We were supposed to have been at the Top O' World restaurant at 9:00 AM September 18th to attend the opening and then to gat an award for fixtures that we designed for JFK Airport.
Tom: Thanks for the history lesson. Maybe you want to educate me on the different sects of Islam. If you know of one that is comfortable with Western ideas please advise.