Remembering Our Ideals
This week marks the sixth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Looking back on that day I am reminded of the grace of spirit that seemed to be universal throughout the country. As a nation, we didn't panic in the face of unknown danger. We unified in grief and resolve. Compassion and sadness was a shared experience that no one could accuse another of having too little of. This was our country. Across the broad diversity of the American population we shared our claim to this nation for the first time in years. America was put to the test on that day. No matter what mistakes we have made between then and now we proved our unity and strength; not despite our diversity, but because of it.
The sky was without airplanes for several days after 9/11. No one traveled. Everything stopped long enough for the nation and the world to register what had happened to us. The world had changed and everyone was aware that the future was not going to be what we had expected. The one certainty was our unity and an absolute confidence that we would not be broken, by this enemy or any other. Six years later there is a part of me that looks back at that time with fondness. There was a confidence in the ability of my government and a belief that our ideals would prove us the better of two warring parties. Liberals and conservatives were not opposite poles of a spectrum of values. We were variations of a common hope that by taking part in our communities and our government we could make both things better. For a brief and shining moment diversity did not mean division. It was the attribute that made us mighty and better than those that attacked us.
Many of these hopes have be dimmed in the passing of time and the inevitable mistakes that all of us made as we tried to find a course to the future. I think back to 2001 when the potential still existed to be the heroes of our creed. That potential still exists, but it seems further away and will always have the tinge of regret attached to our successes. The thought of asking forgiveness for our trespasses never entered my thoughts six years ago. This nation was innocent of wrong according to my limited point of view. Today the actions of our nation become the responsibility of those this government represents; namely all of us that live under its rule. The American virtues of liberty and justice for all have been curtailed by the perception that what we need is the freedom to make war more efficient.
To simply blame this unfortunate truth on those seated in government is to misunderstand how our system of government works. They are the representatives of the will of the American people. If we do not have the energy or the interest to stop where the government is going, then the only people we have to blame is ourselves. The axiom that, “freedom isn't free,” is true on many levels. The complication is that there are several different types of currency that pays for our liberty. One of those burdens is that for our ideals to have value they must be applied and offered to everyone; even our enemies. For my part I am sorry for allowing this government the power it has wielded. The precedents they have set. might one day curtail the rights of those citizens that simply disagree with the majority. If we are to believe that this nation is a functioning democracy then the actions of the government become the propriety of those that are governed. The validity of our freedoms come at the price of having to maintain them for all people, whether they be good, bad, evil or perhaps simply unpopular.
The dignity and heroism that was shown collectively by the American people six years ago is a testament to our strength of character. The failures of the past six years show an insecurity in our own ideals to function in our defense. What happens in the future will depend on the ability to reconcile these issues within ourselves. To take responsibility for our failures and prove our courage in the face of threats to what we hold dear. 9/11 exposed our potential as a nation and the strength of an entire population. Where grief and fear once might have made us fail this potential, the future is ours to create. This anniversary represents a chance to remember what was lost and to hope again toward a shared ideal in the future.
The sky was without airplanes for several days after 9/11. No one traveled. Everything stopped long enough for the nation and the world to register what had happened to us. The world had changed and everyone was aware that the future was not going to be what we had expected. The one certainty was our unity and an absolute confidence that we would not be broken, by this enemy or any other. Six years later there is a part of me that looks back at that time with fondness. There was a confidence in the ability of my government and a belief that our ideals would prove us the better of two warring parties. Liberals and conservatives were not opposite poles of a spectrum of values. We were variations of a common hope that by taking part in our communities and our government we could make both things better. For a brief and shining moment diversity did not mean division. It was the attribute that made us mighty and better than those that attacked us.
Many of these hopes have be dimmed in the passing of time and the inevitable mistakes that all of us made as we tried to find a course to the future. I think back to 2001 when the potential still existed to be the heroes of our creed. That potential still exists, but it seems further away and will always have the tinge of regret attached to our successes. The thought of asking forgiveness for our trespasses never entered my thoughts six years ago. This nation was innocent of wrong according to my limited point of view. Today the actions of our nation become the responsibility of those this government represents; namely all of us that live under its rule. The American virtues of liberty and justice for all have been curtailed by the perception that what we need is the freedom to make war more efficient.
To simply blame this unfortunate truth on those seated in government is to misunderstand how our system of government works. They are the representatives of the will of the American people. If we do not have the energy or the interest to stop where the government is going, then the only people we have to blame is ourselves. The axiom that, “freedom isn't free,” is true on many levels. The complication is that there are several different types of currency that pays for our liberty. One of those burdens is that for our ideals to have value they must be applied and offered to everyone; even our enemies. For my part I am sorry for allowing this government the power it has wielded. The precedents they have set. might one day curtail the rights of those citizens that simply disagree with the majority. If we are to believe that this nation is a functioning democracy then the actions of the government become the propriety of those that are governed. The validity of our freedoms come at the price of having to maintain them for all people, whether they be good, bad, evil or perhaps simply unpopular.
The dignity and heroism that was shown collectively by the American people six years ago is a testament to our strength of character. The failures of the past six years show an insecurity in our own ideals to function in our defense. What happens in the future will depend on the ability to reconcile these issues within ourselves. To take responsibility for our failures and prove our courage in the face of threats to what we hold dear. 9/11 exposed our potential as a nation and the strength of an entire population. Where grief and fear once might have made us fail this potential, the future is ours to create. This anniversary represents a chance to remember what was lost and to hope again toward a shared ideal in the future.
posted by kamuizot at 10:00 AM
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