by Esteban Martinez

Created on: September 11, 2009   Last Updated: September 13, 2009

REMEMBERING A NATIONAL TRAGEDY

Today, 9/11/09, begins like any other day except for the fact the date engulfs the senses.

Although eight years have passed, it seems like only yesterday. I recall every detail of what I was doing that morning and how I was riveted to a television screen witnessing something so incredible and terrifying, nothing seemed real. My mind refused to believe my eyes.

When the first tower began to crumble, I remember holding my breath and gripping the arms of my chair as if I too was falling. As the mammoth structure slid downwards, tears from my eyes erupted without warning. An old friend was being brought to its knees. The horror was magnified knowing that along with the dust and rubble, thousands of lives would be lost.

As a former New Yorker, I witnessed the birth of the World Trade Center and often stood in its shadow. Every year on this day, I turn on my TV and witness the ceremonies and listen to the same rhetoric. This in a sense isn't bad but I believe not enough. What has our government done to alleviate the suffering of those families whose love one's perished that day? What has our government done to end the never-ending fear of another attack? The terrorists are still out there mocking us and especially on this sacred day.

How then should we, as Americans, honor those brutally murdered by a bunch of sadistic terrorists and a leader called Osama Bin Laden?

Instead of the usual rhetoric, I propose a united effort by all Americans and peace loving peoples of the world. We need to gather on the streets in a coordinated rally denouncing acts of terrorism. This type of demonstration would attract the attention of the world and weaken the belief people are afraid to stand up to terrorists.

Believe it or not, the world is repeating history. In olden days, barbarians eventually brought down empires. The names have changed but the results are the same. The only difference is the politics and self interests embraced by governments. Apparently none have learned from history and are moving down the same road to destruction.

Eight years have passed and what have we learned? Oh sure, air travel seems safer and security throughout our metropolitan areas has improved but has it, are you sure and if so would you bet your life on it?

Americans as a rule are too busy working and tending to families and everyday chores to really delve into what's taking place in the horizon. Many will disagree and label me paranoid but that's the price I have to pay for being a realist. Research is something not too many people take time to do and so the only information the average person receives is often taken as gospel. I often tell friends, 'We don't know half of what's going on and will know for sure maybe ten or twenty years from now.'

Think about that for awhile. Try and recall something you heard about someone or some event occurring a long time ago and you instinctively remarked, 'Gee, I didn't know that.'

Right now we don't know what's really going on when it comes down to what these terrorists have in store for us. We need to do more than just remember 9/11, we need to shout and let terror know we are not going to sit around waiting for the next building or aircraft to be destroyed. The terrorist agenda revolves in just that, terror, and if you upset that movement, things will unravel.

Think about it, what does the Taliban offer its people? Are they building schools, roads, and helping the poor? Of course not, they're too busy creating a tsunami of terror, it's easier and cheaper. Disgusting isn't it?

That's why I believe every act of terrorism is an insult to the memory of all those that perished on September 11, 2001. We need to do more!

Learn more about this author, Esteban Martinez.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.