You know with everything that happened on 9/11, I hear so much about the people that had to jump from the building and died (terrible), and the kids who were in daycare (tragic!) and the cops and firefighters who were killed (tragic, although less so IMO because it was their job - still terrible but they were in a risky line of work).
But the ones I don't hear too much about are the ones on that plane that crashed in PA. Holy shit - those guys who figured out that they were going to crash the plane and decided to try to take it over - damn, those guys are some honest to god true life heroes. Can you even imagine basically knowing you're probably going to die, and to stand up to a bunch of assholes with knives ready to kill you, but you do it anyway knowing you're probably going to die either way.
Talk about the ultimate sacrifice. The only people I really agree with getting "payoffs" for dying on 9/11 are those folks. They performed a service above and beyond the comprehension of most people, and they saved possibly thousands of lives and almost certainly millions in property damage... and they were the VERY FIRST Americans who took a stand against terrorism and paid with their lives. And they were just citizens.
We should have a special memorial for them and they should get alot more recognition than they do, IMO.
Agreed. I would have loved to have heard the Arabic expression for, "Uh, boss, they're not buying into the whole box cutter thing anymore!"
Imagine if that was a French airliner. They'd be surrendering en masse right until they plowed into the Eiffel Tower or Louvre.
That's the biggest difference in our societies. We got off the repression kick about 230 years ago. It's in our blood to say "Fuck you!" and do the right thing. In a Muslim culture, all they know is how to be silent bitches to the alpha ragheads.
Our country is great and God Bless the folks that took care of business on United Flight 93.
The maintenance foreman of the office building where I have my office...his father died on that plane.
We've talked about it. I told him how we all think of those passengers as heroes. Really sad. GREAT fellow! No real relevance to this thread...but I agree with Mike. Hard to even imagine what would go through your mind at such a time. I DO think there's some memorial that was built at the site of the crash.
Yup, those were heroes. Every now and then I think about the situation they were in and try to imagine how quickly and clearly they came to the realization that they were going to die ... needed to die to save other people's lives.
Sure it's easy for us to see it all in hindsight. We watched it all on TV, the Trade Center, the Pentagon, watched the whole picture unfolding and yet it took most people several hours or even days to come to the conclusion that we were dealing with a new type of enemy that couldn't be bargained with. An enemy that wasn't going to set the plane down in Libya and barter for the release of A'Zheet M'Draars, leader of the Filthy Septober movement or whatever.
For these people it was almost a psychological experiment in character definition. They were in isolation except for fragmentary news heard second hand via a couple of cell phone calls. Nothing in-your-face like what we saw with the hundreds of repetitions of the tape of those planes flying into buildings. They could so easily have convinced themselves that they were going to survive this experience and walk away suffering nothing more than 72 hrs in a stinky grounded airliner. It would have been a perfectly normal human reaction to rationalize any other way out rather than a suicide charge. And yet they knew. With only fragmentary evidence, they put the pieces of the puzzle together and these everyday people with very little warning came to the conclusion that they must drive their own airliner into the ground rather than allow the alternative to happen to their country. Absolutely amazing. Still astounds me. I hope to God that if I'd been in the same situation I would have had half the character they did.
Weird you bring this up Mike. Last semester this was the EXACT topic I did a paper on for my last Literature class. Our teacher asked us to write about what we will remember most about 9/11, and it was these heroes that had the audacity to face the terrorist and not be scared by these hate driven radicals that I based my paper on. I am in absolute awe of what these people did. Like SE said, I only hope I would of done the same thing in their situation.
I hope to God that if I'd been in the same situation I would have had half the character they did.
I think its that question that I have gone over in my head a million times. I believe I would have tried to be in the front - not to be a hero, but to regain the control I would have been pissed had been taken away from me. Maybe now, knowing what we all do - that decision would be easier.
When I was in NYC, a few weeks after 9/11, I was on the 60th floor of a building overlooking Ground Zero. They had windows you could open; I opened one and leaned out. Looking down, I could not comprehend the choice those people had to make. Jump or burn.
I smile when I think about those terrorist scums last thoughts - were when they saw a planeload of Americans rushing at them. I have no doubt they died with fear in their hearts.
If there is ever a moment that Characterizes who you are in life its a moment like what Brunton is talking about here. Where nothing else matters but what you do right then and there. Those men were true heroes that did selfless acts in the name of what is right, and in the name of their country. Those are the true mentors for American children, not some BS hollywood actor or some idiotic ballplayer.
There has to be a point where you say "we're not going to take it". It would seem to me that collectively, they decided their fate. That takes balls.
Would I gladly have taken their place, I honestly do not know. I would like to think that I would stand up for my country, and it's people, no matter how messed up we make our home, it is still better here than over there.
. Those are the true mentors for American children, not some BS hollywood actor or some idiotic ballplayer.
100% on Target, but today it is all about the "Money". Kids look up to Drug Thugs, Dumbasses like Tyson, the rappers-hip hoppers, sports losers (you pick), who snort and piss away their money while they rape, maintain the "ghetto/trailer park" mentality. Yes, Real American Heroes are the guys on that flight, not the above mentioned Lameasses. To die so that others may live, no words of praise can express it. They unlike the others knew what they were doing.
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