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8 August, 2007
I'm reviewing a lot of things lately and I know it's time to change my site a lot. So, over the next month, I'm going to start redesigning my site to reflect my life now. I think it's important to do and I look forward to the new look. Stay tuned.
14 February, 2005
It's official, Iraq has elected a new government and the Shites have won more than 50% of the votes. We're still waiting to see if Bin-Laden will get rounded up, or for that matter, if any of his other henchmen will be, either. More than 1100 Americans have lost their lives in Iraq, so it would be good to hear something more substantial about the 'war on terrorism' soon. The NYTimes reported a few weeks ago that the commission that was looking into the WMD (Weapons of Mass Destruction) had finally concluded that there were, in fact, none to be found in Iraq. I keep reading about the plans for the new towers at the World Trade Center, but they're still arguing about what the towers will look like and who's going to pay for them.
later..Today marks the second year since the cowardly attack against the US by Arab extremists. Most of their network has been disrupted and their forces seem to be scattered to the winds. Their erstwhile leader remains safe as he hides in some hole in the ground in Pakistan while Allied forces close in on him. It's only a matter of time before he's either brought to justice or sent to his maker. That is, if he hasn't already been killed. The war in Iraq is over, but guerrilla actions still persist, killing one or two US soldiers per day. Hopefully, now that 44 of Saddam Hussan's 52 underlings, including his two sons, is either dead or imprisoned, it won't be long before he too, meets their same fate.
Ground Zero has been cleared of all debris. The PATH station has been rebuild. WTC 7 is being rebuilt. The cornerstone for the new WTC Freedom Tower (1776 Feet tall) is scheduled to be laid in August 2004. Of the 2800 victims of the attack, more than 1500 have been identified from remains.
Someone asked me if things had changed in NYC. Until last month, I would have said not much. But, when NYC and much of the northeastern US was plunged into a blackout, New Yorkers did something I really didn't think would happen. Instead of a reign of looting and fire, New Yorkers pitched in and helped eachother as best they could. Ordinary citizens directed traffic, helped elderly neighbors get up and down stairs or get water or food. There was no looting. There were less arrests than on a normal night. People sat out on the street and had parties or slept on the sidewalks and no one got hurt. 30hrs later, when the lights came back on, everything was as normal as usual. But it was obvious to anyone looking at what had happened that New Yorkers had been changed by the events of 9-11-01. They were all part of a new chapter in American life. They had survived a homicidal attack and come through it. Like the Londoners of 1940, New Yorkers had been tested in the fires of Hell and come through it.
12 September, 2002: One year later...
11 March, 2002: Six months later and the pile at WTC is almost cleaned up. By June, the last of it should be gone. The war in Afghanistan should be nearly over. Al-Queda is broken, shattered, it's cowardly leaders either dead or hiding in deep, dark holes. Our world has been irrevocably changed. What I wrote 6 months ago rings just as true now, as it did then. Nearly 3000 people were killed at the WTC, 343 of them FDNY, 23 of them NYPD, 37 PAPD. This also includes the passengers of the two jets that were used as guided missles on the two towers. Another 268 were killed at the Pentagon when a jet was flown into it. And about 255 were killed when a fourth jet which was being hijacked, was crashed into a field outside of Pittsburgh when the passengers wrestled control of it back from the hijackers. For these people and those they left behind, we must never forget.
This is a good listing of stories about 9-11
Words fail to express the absolute
horror and anger this act of cowardice has come to represent. The thousands
of innocent victims who, through no fault of their own, were targeted for
execution. We, as a nation, must never forget this act, nor allow it to cause
the effect these cowards wanted to inflict upon us. We are a diverse nation
with many problems. But it is these problems and diversity that make us stronger.
Our diversity, our uniqueness, is what makes AMERICA a place that attracts
more immigrants than any other country in the world. Our FREEDOM has
been, and will continue to be, a beacon to those who are not free. We may
have lost nearly 5000 people, but we can't let their deaths be for nothing.
We must help those who need help right now. We must rebuild. We must carry
on. We must avenge. But most importantly,
WE MUST NEVER FORGET.
== New York Hotlines, Helpful Sites == (taken from atNewYork.Com Newsletter)
The following is a round-up of some local hotlines and sites with
information about the response to New York's rescue and clean up after the
terrorist attack on the World Trade Centers.
For information about how and where to donate blood in the city, call
1-800-933-2566 The New York Blood Center has declared a blood emergency for
the greater New York/New Jersey metropolitan area. Check
http://www.nyblookcenter.org for more information on how to help.
Web site for FBI tips on the attacks: http://www.ifccfbi.gov. A toll-free
tip line for the FBI: 1-866-483-5137
Cable channel NY1 also carried on its Web site an extensive list of hotlines
and information about how to volunteer to help the response to the
destruction in lower Manhattan.
http://www.ny1.com/ny/TopStories/SubTopic/index.html?topicintid=1&subtopicintid=1&contentintid=16017.
Or go to: http://www.ny1.com
Some hotlines include:
* NYC hotline for family and friends of victims: 212-560-2730 (instead of 911)
* New York Police Department: 718-677-8328
* New York Fire Department rescue efforts: 718-999-2541
* Port Authority employee information: 973-565-5505/5506/5507
* St. Vincent's Hospital asks that doctors or nurses who could help to call: 212-604-7285
* U.S. Government family hotline: 1-800-331-0075
* Also, atNewYork's sister site, http://www.channelseven.com, has compiled the following list:
For more information on helping victims, visit http://www.helping.org.
* The United Way of New York and the New York Community Trust have
established a fund to help the victims of the attacks and their families.
The September 11th Fund has been set up to provide immediate support to
emergency assistance agencies. Contributions will be used to respond to the
urgent needs of victims and their families. Donations should be sent in care
of United Way, 2 Park Ave, New York, New York, 10016, or call 212-251-4035.
Donations are also being accepted on United Way of New York City's Web site:http://www.uwnyc.org.
American Red Cross, cash donations: 1-800-HELP-NOW
A site looking to help collect names of survivors:
http://www.ny.com/wtclist.html.
More sites and helpful numbers here:
http://www.atnewyork.com/news/article/0,1471,8471_883031,00.html
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Last updated Thusday, 16 July 2009