Hello.
I am a proud American. I am a hurt New Yorker.
I feel pain. I feel anger. I am sad.
My life has changed forever. I have lost people, loved ones and co-workers.

BUT I have a different view that I want to share and that nobody seems to be willing to consider.

I urge you to consider and possibly understand that as much as they are unjustified and unjustifiable, these terrible attacks have a reason. There are responsabilities that none seems to be willing to accept.

Truly horrible crimes against humanity did take place, but not just in New York or at the Pentagon!

We MUST understand that America's foreign policy of oppression, imperialism, resource exploiting and lack of respect had to create some kind of response sooner or later.
America has killed thousands of people in the middle eastern countries. We killed them for years. We had NO respect. But we do NOT want to know, or we seem not to be interested. We didn't watch and didn't listen while our government was killing them for years.

Now we feel hurt, we feel attacked, we feel vulnerable, but instead of joining our forces to kill more people than those who got killed already (in NY, in Washington DC as well as in the middle eastern countries) I urge you to understand that it is our fault if there are people that hate us! We have to change to prevent future attacks from happening. That is the only way to go! We can't just take off with our planes and bomb countries with thousands of innocent people (many of them feel our pain and feel sympathy too, you gotta believe it!).

We MUST find who knocked down the World Trade Center and we MUST punish them.
But we CANNOT choose one person and make him guilty. We MUST fight terrorism but we can't kill thousands of families, women and children who unfortunately were born in a country were terrorism did proliferate.

If Bin Laden killed my city I want him to pay for it, but we need to be sure that it was him. We can't accuse him with no evidence or we will be disattending and ignoring some of the most important principles of our constitution and of our legal system.

We need to know WHO our enemy is!
Once we know, we need to understand WHY we have an enemy!
We need to understand that WHERE the enemy lives is not an entire country of terrorists!
We need to know WHAT made him/them enemies.

People do NOT hate for NO reason. We gave them plenty of reasons. We killed their people. We killed many many more than they killed in New York last week. We did it with no respect and no guilt, because they are far away from us and frankly we didn't give a damn about 'em. We killed many innocent lives in order to kill a few of the bad ones. We can't let this happen again. WE MUST KEEP THIS FROM HAPPENING!

Our great president is now ready. He is ready to kill many innocents and he will use terrorism as an excuse to bomb countries he always wanted to "punish" for some unknown reason.

Our government MUST learn respect before we try to teach respect!

Our government is ready to hit. Are we ready to let MORE INNOCENT people die for no reason? Do we care about justice or is blind revenge all we really want? Do we even care?

PLEASE: I URGE YOU TO ACCEPT OUR RESPONSABILITES AND TO UNDERSTAND THAT WE CANNOT LET MORE INNOCENT PEOPLE DIE FOR NO REASON! I URGE YOU TO PUT LOVE AHEAD OF HATE!

We must catch the bastards who killed my friends and the people of my city, but we cannot kill thousands to punish one!
Arab nations must weed out the fanatics and the terrorists, but we cannot bomb arab nations to obtain this result!

We cannot let our government use this as an excuse to further oppress the middle-eastern countries and increase their poverty to increase our richness. If we let this happen, it will happen again. They will attack us again. Sooner or later. And maybe then it will be my turn, or maybe it will be your turn to be killed in a terrorist attack.

Please remember: Allah doesn't condone suicide and murder! Not every muslim is a terrorist. Not every arab is a terrorist. Please don't be racist, please do not let hate overcome! Thousands of middle-eastern people are good people. Most of them are. Let's not be stupid and narrow-minded. Let's face it: Even though there was one crazy american who killed dozen of people in Oklahoma City, this does not make every american person a mass-killer. Likely, 10 middle-eastern kamikazee do not make every middle-eastern person a terrorist! Remember! BE INTELLIGENT!

I feel pain for my city and my town.
I want to express my deepest and most sincere sympathy, respect, love, support and grief for all the beloved ones who died and to their families and friends.

I will always remember my friends in the World Trade Center. I lost 8 friends and 12 co-workers. I have no job now. All I have is a hope: a hope for peace, love and justice. No more victims! Please!

A proud american. A hurt New Yorker.

let the nukes fly on kabul. It's time to fuckin! blow the Taliban to smithereens. Don't these people realize we are not living in 900 A.D.? don't care, call me fuckin ignorant, violent, whatever, but one thing is for sure. President Bush is going to fuckin! get Bin Laden "dead or alive" that fuckin! extremist fag!

who cares if bin laden is not the sole person respnsible, that mother fuckin prick, blew up the US embassies in Africa killed 213 people and blew up the USS cole. If that is not enough to hang that prick, I don't know what is! Long live freedom.

Our heroes of FDNY, NYPD, and NYC EMS became heroes the day they put on their uniform for the first time. On that day they made a decision that they were going to put others lives and safety before their own. They go to work each day not knowing what the day may have in store for them. They leave home not knowing if they will return. I can be sure that this thought was not in the forefront of their minds, but it is always a possibility. On 9-11-01, that unthinkable thought became reality for so many of our brothers and sisters. Is that the day that makes them a hero? No, they were heroes long before and will continue to be heroes and heroines for all eternity. Because they were doing their job! God Bless You and Thank You!

Let us not forget the other people who on that day, unbeknownst to them, became heroes. Those who may have been at their desks, having coffee with friends, or working just to make a living. I see these people as great heroes also. When an individual is called upon to do something that is totally out of their nature or daily routine so they can assist others, makes them a hero also. For those people who were looking forward to another day in the office, but were called upon to save one another I hold them in high standing also. There seem to be so many stories of "everyday individuals" who put their lives on the line for others-- I honor you. You too are heroes. God Bless You and Thank You.

As a professional firefighter, I have chosen a career that may put me in the face of danger. I do not feel heroic, just helpful. I do not feel that I can save all people and things, but maybe I can help ease pain and suffering. I guess, as I reflect on my own experiences, I see that what Americans did and are doing are not only "Acts of Heroism" but "Acts of Humanism".

God Bless Us All

Rob Leahy
Jackson Fire Dept.
Canton, Ohio

I am so sorry to all the familise of vicitims as well as for the victims the,selves.
Such an evil pointless attack
Here in the UK we are with you all.
Rachel dickinson

The Wall of Prayers
http://www.wallofprayers.com
The Wall of Prayers Web Site

This site is here to give something back to the many victims of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center the Pentagon and United Airlines Flight 93.

I'm a retired firefighter after 20 years of service, retired in 2001 from an injury. I like so many of you, cannot even begin to express what I feel about this senseless act nor the sorrow felt for the families and friends of those lost. Frustrated with the attacks as everyone has been, needing a way to help, this is the result. Our name was inspired from the wall of pictures everyone named "Wall of Prayers" at the Bellevue Hospital Center in New York.

"As time goes on, there will be many stories of heroism and bravery that will be told. Each one of the victims that died was a hero in their own way. "

We would love to hear about these stories and people as they unfold or are told. I give you this site to post stories, pictures, memorials for victims, prayers, resources, anything to help or share with others.

Please use this site in a healthy productive manner and God bless!

I would like to send my deepest regards to all those who have lost someone in the horrific terrorist attacks. This senseless act has shaken America to the core. I just wish that I could turn back the hands of time and make all the events of Tues.September 11 2001 disappear. I want tell all the families/friends of victims. Americans and the world are grieving with you. To all the volunteers may God bless you and protect you in your search. To America I am so proud to say that I am an American.

Do you know what Osama Bin Laden said when the second airplane hit the WTC ?
"Oooops, I did it again."

Questions,
I felt much the way you did until 5 years ago. On September 22, 1996 I lost someone that I loved dearly to a fatal car accident. I was totally devastated. The only thing i knew was that i was saved and that i had a 2 yearold little boy that meant the world to me also. I began by searching the bible and talking to religious leaders. I went to the book store to find a book about accepting the loss of a loved one. What i found has lead my beliefs to this day. The name of the book was Heaven , my real home. The lady who wrote this book is in a wheelchair. She is quadipelegic. Due to an accident she had when she was around 18. This book really inspired me and helped me to deal with death. It gave biblical scriptures to support the reading.

May God Bless you

Tragedy in the 21st Century...Poem from a Canadian to all.
Author: Juanita Bezanson
Date: 09-23-01 17:04

On September 11 two thousand and one
The United States became stunned
The sunny Tuesday made everyone cry
as disaster started from a clear blue sky
At 8:45am Flight 11 crashed in to the World Trade Center. The City stood still.
9:03 am Flight 175 crashed in to the World Trade Centers south tower, with all intentions to kill.
Terrorist on those planes with only one thought in mind.
Make a war in the United States, Leaving their beautiful past behind.
9:45 am another disaster hits and all is going wrong.
American Flight 77 had just crashed in the the Pentagon.
Every United States citizen is horrified on this Sept day
When they learn of yet another flight, United Flight 93 at 10:10 am just crashed in Pa.
Memories of this day, hurt so many of us so
Why was this done / no one will ever know.
Men , Woman , and Children were all victims of this sad tragedy
Many others are victims not knowing if again their loved ones they'll see.
Airports were closed, Flights came to Canada to land
Canadians did everything they could to lend a helping hand.
Americans, Canadians the whole world watched in disbelief
We all bowed our heads for the victims , there familys , with great pain and grief.
Our children are now wondering of stories they now hear.
Do we now live in a world full of hatred and fear?
What will happen to history now? Is there another war at hand?
Mommy , Daddy will they ever catch this man?
Things will never be the same the world in torn apart.
All around the world sorrow fills ever heart.
Myself and my family, just like alot of people today
Will hang our head in scilence for the victims and there familys and pray.
God bless America for all that you do
Just remember we Canadains are always here for you.


I would like to add my deepest sympathy to you all, I hope this poem helps cheer someone or just put a smile on there face.
My email is snuggles_2u@hotmail.com

GOD BLESS !!!!!!!

Just the facts,

I agree with a lot of what you said. It is our choices that cause many things to happen.

from a small town in Wales, thousands of miles apart. all the people of America are truly in our hearts.
We LOVE America, We Love all the people we met. We feel a lot of friends were lost.Friends we never met.
From one family who knows the hurt, may we send our thoughts, and Love to all of the families whoes lost a loved one.
May god-bless you all, And America...

from a small town in Wales, thousands of miles apart. all the people of America are truly in our hearts.
We LOVE America, We Love all the people we met. We feel a lot of friends were lost.Friends we never met.
From one family who knows the hurt, may we send our thoughts, and Love to all of the families whoes lost a loved one.
May god-bless you all, And America...

To Justthefacts,
Whew! since I've been gone you've been on a tear. I see you and Questions have formed an alliance for tackling the issue of religion. Brave you are but we've got our own conversation so I'll respond to your last post.

I cannot believe, with all of the brain power at their disposal,with all the incredible talent that abounded around them, that my hindsight wasn't, at one point, foresight. This, there was no paucity of. What was missing was a game plan that included stalemate, containment, and/or wait and see, as an option play. To toss the ball in that direction, against an aging, over the hill team, who didn't seem capable of winning, would have been too sporting when you could crush them and run up the score.

Your remarks about losing to the CCCP being the end of us all sure sounds like political fatalism to me. If you research the big corporations of eastern Europe you'll notice that the best start for big capitalist was communist party cards. In china you'll, no doubt, have noticed that they are communist only in name. I don't mean to say that things wouldn't be radically different if "they" had won, but I really don't think we'd be calling the names Orwell and Nostradamus in the same sentence either. What it would be I don't know? But I suspect that their system was failing and our march towards market economies, even socialized ones, was inevitable, because of the nature of the creature called man.

Now let me get this straight. You stated that the only foreign policy decision you didn't support was the Iran/Contra affair. I thought all was fair game when fighting communism? What's wrong with selling arms for hostages even though your campaign promise stated you wouldn't? What's wrong with letting a few hundred anti-communist guerrillas smuggle coke to fund their war against the the Sandanistas? How could it be wrong for our president and everybody else involved to go before the American people and lie about it? Wasn't it great when Ollie North essentially said he would usurp every and any American law(and people) if the chief asked him to. That sure made me have faith that our founding father's ideals were alive and well and safe in the hands of our great leaders. That this was all done in the name of the cold war surely makes me wonder why you wouldn't support it. Is it because we, the American people, got screwed? So why not be concerned when other people are getting screwed? If my ears and eyes don't deceive me this is what the rest of world is well pissed about. Making the interest of the USA and It's few close friends, mutually exclusive and/or prime to others. The cold war is not totally to blame in this process though because, previous to the cold war, and thus intermingled or overlapping with it, in a most sordid philosophical cohabitation, was the foreign policy directive known as Manifest Destiny. This seems to be the genesis of our foreign policy problems. The concept that we are due our share of the worlds spoils continues to plague us. Isn't this a sort of entitlement concept.

If I'm not mistaken though, there seems to have already been an adjustment to our policy foreign. In particular I've noticed that we seem to have given directives to our ward in the middle east to get back to the bargaining table and settle the issues. If this is all true maybe we have learned from this experience and maybe the, as you say, "mindset" has or is changing. Let's hope it all continues because the extrapolation of this is promising.

Saying that you believe most people come here to be free or to enjoy the ideals seems nice but jingoistic. I'm afraid that theory doesn't hold much water when examined well. Even though there were those among the founding fathers who came to these shores to escape religious oppression and other ills, there were plenty who came to become wealthy. Just like in the other parts of the Americas. This has not changed much over time. You know why I mentioned Singapore(lack of democracy). I'm sure that their migration/immigration statistics are skewed badly to the immigration side. Even Saudi Arabia, a fairly repressive kingdom has a net immigration. They had to give Usamma the heave to get him to go. America could be the most free land ever, but if we couldn't offer jobs and a better standard of living, most of America would look like a sad and lonely little hamlet in North Dakota.

until the next time.
p.s. whose uncle were you callin a Ho!

To a proud American. A hurt New Yorker. I feel the pain and I really feel your comments.

To Questions, U*S*A(in your biblical way) and others. Thanks for helping to raise the debate above the gutter.

To Another American

perhaps one day soon China will only be communist in name only, but wer'e not quite there yet. When it does happen it will have been the culmination of Chinese swimming with the tide of global events rather than against it. They have not been able to keep up with us militarily, and have surely taken note of the inevitable outcome should they try. (see Soviet Union ). Am I cynical ? maybe, but I don't think you are free from cynicism either. This is reassuring as anyone who takes the moral high ground without cynicism is very scary indeed. I am talking about you and me both.
Right now I am tired and a little dejected/defeated thanks to current events. Even now new dimensions of horror over 11sep are still revealing themselves. How long will it take to effectively dismantle international terrorism, if indeed it is possible. Of course if we put our minds to it we can round up bin Laden and al-Queeda but will that be enough ? Depends how we go about it and any "collateral damage" I suppose. And then what ? If I am honest I wouldn't mind much if we closed all our overseas bases, cut the military budget in half, scrapped the stupid missile defense shield, enforced a worldwide ban on any kind of arms dealing and spent saved money on helping pull through less fortunate nations into the 21st century. There will still be the odd Hussein or Milosovich. We should never stand by as we did in Rwanda and Bosnia, but how could we help without taking sides, and invoking hatred of the other side, thus preparing the ground for another 11sep ?
It is impossible to be just the good guys, as we will always be the bad guys to someone if we take sides even if our motives are purely humanitarian. Is "splendid isolation" the only alternative ? You applaud possible shift in our foreign policy toward Middle East so you are not one of the "batten down the hatches" guys.
Still think people come here for freedom. Getting rich might be a bonus but not being poor is priority still. Anyway escape from poverty is freedom. Extreme wealth is a prison, of sorts.
Not happy about build-up in Gulf etc. And don't forget to keep an eye on Putin, he'd like to sort out his little Islamic problem and possibly favours the Iron Fist approach. Thought your comment about our oppostion to Soviets in Afghanistan as "not very sporting" quite amusing. Not being derogatory, I did actually smile. Any sporting gestures to Soviets would have fallen on barren ground I fear. And a poorly armed Afghan resistance would have succumbed. However, now we are caught in our own tangled web maybe we should have let Afghanistan go to hell back then, because it has managed to get there anyhow. With a little US/USSR/Taliban joint effort.
Suspect you don't drink at Starbucks.

Take it easy.