When Will This End?

I remained quiet yesterday out of respect for those who both lost their lives (victims) and those who sacrificed their lives (first responders) and their family members. But today I'm talking and I'm being loud.

The 16 acres were the towers stood is still nothing more than a deep pit. There is no monument there, no marker on the mass grave of over 2, 500 people. But then, perhaps a pit is the most accurate monument this administration can give. Brushing aside the whole 'how much responsibility does the Bush Administration bear for this attack" arguement. Let's pretend to play along with the MSM bile that OBL and his rag-tag group of operatives were solely responsible for this tragic occurence. Hell, I won't even bring up the "Pet Goat" or the 9 minutes of blank staring or the blood curdling smirk on his face at that little photo op inside the school.

Let us start instead with the response of both citizens, (national and global) and the administration.

Thousands of civilian volunteers came out to help anyone and everyone, shifting through rubble, trying to find even the tiniest fragments of bone or flesh in the attempt to give someone's family at least the peace of mind of knowing for certian what had happened to their loved ones.
The Bush Administration? Photo ops, sound bites and cheerleading over how great America is and how the rest of the world wants to either emulate or destroy her.

Global reaction? Without fail every major world govenment was squarely behind us, mourning with us, offering us financial and technical aid. Even Le Monde's headline read "We are all Americans today".

For one brief period of time not only was all of America united, 80% of the WORLD was united. Truly we had a moment of global brotherhood that could have been turned into the greatest epoch of human acheivement and cooperation that the world may have ever born witness to. But it didn't happen that way, did it?

Instead that outpouring of grief and sympathy and solidarity was turned against the citizens of the USA and the hands outreached in friendship from across the globe were all but smacked away or ignored. We were forced to give up many of the Rights our ancestors fought and died for (Patriot Act) miraculously the paperwork for all the highjackers seemed to be the only things that were not destroyed in the collapse of the towers. And the madmen who rule us now firmly dug themselves in, using fear, uncertainty and bigotry to cement themselves into their current positions of power.

W used lies, deceit and the open raw wounds of this country to start a war with Iraq. 'Somebody' had to pay...this wasn't justice it was a lynching and any dark-skinned people would do. So much of the country fell for his lies, those that didn't were branded traitors, shouted down or physically stopped from voicing any rational dissent.

We should have listened better, we should have yelled louder.

Now, five years have passed. We have as many members of the armed forces dead as there were victims in the towers. Are we feeling better now? More moral, more justified. Has it brought peace to any of the families of those who died?

What about the president and his cronies? I doubt they lose any sleep over it, after all no one important died, just the people they were sworn to protect. But then they can allow NOLA to drown and fester for days, shoot old men in the face and steal away our liberties, money and future and not bat an eye so I wouldn't be looking to that lot for moral guidance.

BTW, if you want to hear the BEST editorial regarding the 9/11 anniversary, I point you towards Crooks and Liars to listen to Keith Olberman, I think I found a hero.