The "Legacy" thusfar...



On the anniversary (5th) of the 9/11 attacks, it's interesting to note that some things have been done to memorialize those who gave their lives that morning. I would have preferred that MORE had been done. More should BE done. In NYC...basically nothing has been done to forward the building of "THE" memorial for the twin towers. The designers have been going over...and over...and over exactly WHAT they want to place there, and how it should reflect the disaster and acknowlege the sacrifices of those that day.
Now I'm all for doing it right the first time, but let's be real here...how much can you OVERTHINK any project before it becomes burdensome and even boring? The Park Service IS building a memorial in Shanksville, PA where flight 93 went down. And THEIR project is moving FORWARD. So at least something is getting done. The Pentagon has been rebuilt, but because THAT facility is a hub for national security, that was pretty much a "given" from day one. Back in NYC, the proposed memorial is currently costing about $750 million dollars...that is IF it ever gets built.

But what other legacies have we incurred?

We have more thorough searches at airports...we have become more aware of the "unseen" enemy lurking in our shadows. We are finally starting to do something about illegal immigartion along our borders (after over 30 MILLION illegals have already gotten into America), so we have learned to "fix the gate", even after the horses have gotten out, so to speak.
Are we more paranoid that we were prior to 9/11? Perhaps a little, but not nearly as much as we were back in the 1950s when every other person was building fallout shelters to protect themselves for the threat of nuclear holocaust from those bad old communists in the USSR. Then again, THAT "enemy" was tangible...able to be seen, and fought. Today, we're not merely fighting some radicals who will challenge us on a battlefield to regular combat. We're fighting a foe that can blend into almost any surrounding, biding their time, until they choose to strike. Their driving force is a religious belief, however bastardized they have chosen to make it. We're waging war on a dogma...a perverse "way of life" even.

And one of the hardest things to wage war and secure victory over...is an IDEA!

Many in America have grown tired of the war in the Middle East, and I suppose they're entitled to their opinion. I for one believe that this is MORE of a threat to us than communism ever was. This is AS GREAT a threat to democracy and freedom (wherever it may be in the world) as the fascists on 1930s Germany, who through their idealistic notion of the "master race" sought world domination (at the cost of over 6 MILLION Jews). These Islamic fascists are no better than Hitler's Nazis, except that their type of warfare is less dependant on that battlefield per se. They view the battlefield as the streets of free nations. They view the targets as NOT being leaders, but the average citizens, their stores, their schools, and their way of life. Democracy and freedom to these terrorists represents something counter to the way their "god" expects of them. And ANY "god" that preaches death and destruction over peace and tolerance is not only a false god, but is choosing to lead his believers into the fiery pit along with himself.

Yes indeed...an interesting legacy for the FIRST 5 years after 9/11. I'm curious to see what the NEXT 5 years has to offer.

In the meantime, all we as Americans can strive to do is support those fighting terrorism, and be ever vigilant on our own shores, on our streets, and in our homes. The spirit of those that gave the ultimate sacrifice back in 2001 should act as a beacon of unity for not only our people here, but for everyone that desires freedom throughout the globe.
Maybe that idea of having September 11th being proclaimed as "Patriot Day" has some real meaning to it. And searching for meaning is always something to eschew.

THAT would be a good legacy...by any standard.