September 12 - A Day of Real Meaning

Yesterday was September 11, 2006, the five year anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. The day was marked by contemplation and rememberance, reflection and introspection. Our leaders claimed that we are better now, stronger and more concerned about American ideals. They reminded us that we are better than the terrorists and that they have not affected anything.

Are they right? What happens on September 11 stays on September 11. It is symbolism and celebration, not reinforcing true American values. I think life is 10% what happens to you, 90% how you react to it. Are we better? Are we bigger? Do we stand for American values? Do we behave? WWJD?

Fuck. We blew it. The world was on our side and we over-reacted. Not only did we wander into an unwinnable war, we claimed victory after the first year with great audacity. People are still dying on both sides and every day we make the world more angry and polarized with the U.S. of A.

What can we do? If we spent 1% of the military budget feeding, immunizing and caring for people here and abroad there would be a lot less suffering. We could treat kids with a big old syringe full of USA vaccine emblazened with Old Glory. We could give starving children Lucky Charms and Pepsi and they could be fat like us.

Kindness and love are cheap to dispense. Hate and evil are expensive because each side has to spend more and make bigger boom-booms to outdo the other. We are in that escalation.

I think we will all change our minds after the nookuler bomb. At that point we finally might evaluate what is really important and what it really means to be a human and an American.