18 Years Ago Today...

[L84Cabo]

...2977 people would be spending their last night with their family.

May they forever rest in peace.

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[L84Cabo]

This is also a pretty interesting read if you haven't seen it...

‘We’re the Only Plane in the Sky’

Where was the president in the eight hours after the Sept. 11 attacks? The strange, harrowing journey of Air Force One, as told by the people who were on board.

www.politico.com

Nearly every American above a certain age remembers precisely where they were on September 11, 2001. But for a tiny handful of people, those memories touch American presidential history. Shortly after the attacks began, the most powerful man in the world, who had been informed of the World Trade Center explosions in a Florida classroom, was escorted to a runway and sent to the safest place his handlers could think of: the open sky.

For the next eight hours, with American airspace completely cleared of jets, a single blue-and-white Boeing 747, tail number 29000—filled with about 65 passengers, crew and press, and the 43rd president, George W. Bush, as well as 70 box lunches and 25 pounds of bananas—traversed the eastern United States. On board, President Bush and his aides argued about two competing interests—the need to return to Washington and reassure a nation and the competing need to protect the commander in chief. All the while, he and his staff grappled with the aftermath of the worst attack on American soil in their lifetimes, making crucial decisions with only flickering information about the attacks unfolding below. Bush struggled even to contact his family and to reach Vice President Dick Cheney in the White House bunker.

The story of those remarkable hours—and the thoughts and emotions of those aboard—isolated eight miles above America, escorted by three F-16 fighters, flying just below the speed of sound, has never been comprehensively told.

This oral history, based on more than 40 hours of original interviews with more than two dozen of the passengers, crew and press aboard—including many who have never spoken publicly about what they witnessed that day—traces the story of how an untested president, a sidearm-carrying general, top aides, the Secret Service and the Cipro-wielding White House physician, as well as five reporters, four radio operators, three pilots, two congressmen and a stenographer responded to 9/11.

 

[Alexx1401]

Hard to believe its been that long. I sure remember it well. Was fairly new to the net, saw a post on a board about it, turned on news in time to see second tower get hit. What a sinking feeling it was. Then when they fell it seemed surreal.

 

[tac]

Meanwhile, a hundred yards from our house here in far-off Eastern England, a couple were looking with stunned amazement as their son died right in front of their eyes when the North Tower fell.

No matter how far away you think you are, terrible events can walk straight into your living room.

 

[clearconscience]

NEVER FORGET!

It's sad how far we've come in the collective patriotism since the time.

God Bless America and all the Men and Women who have served to keep us safe.

The strongest walls are not made of mortar and stone. They are made of Brave men standing between you and the evil that wishes to destroy you.

 

[Camelfilter]

 

[USMC-03]

"And Caesar's spirit, raging for revenge,
With Ate by his side come hot from hell,
Shall in these confines with a monarch's voice
Cry "Havoc!" and let slip the dogs of war,
That this foul deed shall smell above the earth
With carrion men, groaning for burial."

Julius Caesar Act 3, scene 1,

 

[DB is Here]

It was a day of Cowardice and Courage all in one. God Bless America.

 

[Member 34319]

Still remember that day. Watching the news. Everything cancelled and we just kind of waited to see if anything else was going to happen.

 

[v0lcom13sn0w]

Never Forget.

 

[fredball]

My wife and i were camping at lake billy Chinook and thought America was under Attack so we Packed up and Drove home
Where was everyone else

 

[fredball]

My wife and i were camping at Lake Billy Chinook and thought America was under Attack so we Packed up and Drove home
Where was everyone else

 

[slimmer13]

Work. Exactly like today.

 

[2A2Dend]

On my PC doing video chat with a friend. Behind, his camera showed both towers in the background, and the first impact.
We were both jaw dropped at what had happened.

 

[RicInOR]

I was at work. At the time I was answering help center calls - internal. I got a co-workers call who was not coming in. Then I got another, he stopped and said, you don't know what is going on do you?

The internet as we know it was not really in existence. It certainly was not on everyones screens all the time.
No live streaming of every event. CNN was down - their web presence was served from those towers.


I knew no one there, but it still felt like a gut punch.
Tried to give blood later, but the Red Cross was over whelmed.


I work today at the same campus different building, but now for a vendor instead of the customer.

 

[clearconscience]

 

[clearconscience]

I was working two jobs, my first job was in a call center in downtown Portland. I started at 7am and was getting set up, listening to the radio, but was a little foggy from being tired.
The girl in the cubicle next to me said "Oh my God, are you listening to this?"
Then my fogginess lifted and it registered what was happening, our supervisor came in and told every one to go home.
I went to my next job and watched on tv for about an hour, my manager came up to me before my shift started and told me to just take the day off.
I sat on the couch for the rest of the day just staring blanking at the Tv.

It was my 20th birthday.
Almost every birthday since I have sheds some tears.
I remember I used to read the paper everyday. And for weeks and weeks there would be a full two pages of obituaries of people who lost their lives that day. It just never seemed to end.

I still have the front page of the paper from 9/11, and one of the flags that they put in every newspaper holder.

 

[KKG]

I woke up and turned on the TV and watched the Second Tower get hit. I didn't normally do that. I still don't know just why.

 

[KKG]

The following Saturday, the 18th, my Surrogate son got Married and many of the people who were to attend Simply weren't able to get here.

 

[RicInOR]

Interesting account of PA Flight 93

Instapundit » Blog Archive » 2002 FLASHBACK: MARK STEYN ON the triumph of American values: Unlike those on the earlier …

2002 FLASHBACK: MARK STEYN ON the triumph of American values: Unlike those on the earlier flights, the hostages on 93 understood they were aboard a flying bomb intended to kill thousands of their fellow citizens. They knew there would be no happy ending. So they gave us the next best thing, a...

pjmedia.com

Brad Todd: 109 Minutes.

More:

Instapundit » Blog Archive » SO NOW IT’S THE 18TH ANNIVERSARY OF 9/11. Back then, InstaPundit was shiny and new new. Now it…

SO NOW IT’S THE 18TH ANNIVERSARY OF 9/11. Back then, InstaPundit was shiny and new new. Now it’s not, and some people have been warning of “blogger burnout.” But I’m still here. On prior 9/11 anniversaries, I’ve given shooting lessons to a Marine, I’ve taken the day off from blogging, and I’ve...

pjmedia.com