h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Too true - however, if you were a terrorist , wouldn't you realise that security would be tighter today than on any day and wait until it dies down a bit!!

I AM SO DAMN SICK OF MY BLOODY YANKEE MEDIA SATURATING EVERY LAST FACET OF COMMUNICATION WITH BLOODY STINKING "REMEMBER 9/11"!!!!!



I am personally damn embarrassed it even happened. The FBI and CIA can't know everything, but American policies are cruel, selfish, bull-headed and often ignorant, unfortunately, and we bloody deserved to have our butts kicked!!!

Mother whines to me that "no one deserves to be murdered like that". I'm not missing the point that the terrorists attacks were terrible, and the men responsible for them were/are radical, vengeful, evil....

But bloody hell, the U.S. is so big on herself, and still is. Why did it happen!?? "Oh, they're just bad people and they hate us!!!!".... DO VERY MANY PEOPLE TRY TO BLOODY SEE ***WHY*** OTHERS HATE THE U.S.!??

DO WE BLOODY ATTEMPT TO CHANGE!??

If I hear that it's "The Day that Changed us Forever" one more time, I might have to throw up on the person who said it. Because I think that's a farce. I still see us as much the same as we were before, and I have to sadly feel that the only people it truly changed were those that died, those that volunteered, those that lost someone they knew, and those involved in our government. Ok, some journalists and reporters have probably been affected.

But by and large, a lot of us Yankees are still holes, still stealing $5 earrings at Wal*Mart, still selfish, still ambitious, still honking their horns loudly in city traffic.

I have had a small U.S. flag in my car for almost a year now. I almost threw it out when I felt discouraged by the functions that run this nation, but Ian, my boyfriend, insisted I didn't. So it's still there.

But I'm not wearing red, white and blue today. My friend in New Zealand asked what my plans were for this day. My plans are to GO TO SCHOOL AND LEARN SOMETHING. I guess that makes me selfish and ambitious, but where is the time for this sentimental, psuedo-patriotic fluff!??

It leaves a bad taste in my mouth. We're supposedly such a hard-working, industrious lot that walks all over the small people, and today we'll all gather around a flag pole and cry and pray and look at our shoes and feel UNITED.

But then we'll be back to being African-Americans, Irish-Americans, Italian-Americans, Mexican-Americans, Native Americans, et al once we've stepped away from the ceremonies.

And if any of us do make the effort to see any of the world outside the United States, too many of us easily jaunt into the Starbucks and the McDonald's waiting for us with their U.S. comforts, standing boldly in their locations abroad.

And it takes a war to get us to take any interest in world geography. No wonder we are so easily hated.

But Peet, it has been a year. We have been attacked. We go by our calendar(I use a European one now, btw... Mom tried to buy me one for 2003, and I said NO!!!!). We can celebrate the anniversary however we like.

Me!?? I'm going to keep the media turned off and tuned out.

And the comparisons to Pearl Harbor don't quite make it in my book. Pearl Harbor was/is a bleeding naval base. The Pentagon, understandable, a target.... But what happened 365 days ago was terribly different.

I can only HOPE we learned something, and that it's not a lesson that creates an easier-to-despise U.S. populace.

Thank you, D... that's precisely how I feel about the whole thing.

I guess I'll defend the States and say I have meant tons of unique, educated and kind people on the road. And it's a HUGE country. So there are bound to be a lot of holes. Working at a Wal*Mart surely can't help my opinion of the people who live here....

Amy

So, are the penguins overtaking the world Linux ones, or not!??

Dragonfly, I wasn't demeaning the idea of remembrance, and I'm sorry if it came across like that.

What I was trying to draw attention to was the fact that, when deciding when another attack was most likely, Americans based the "state of readiness" by their own calendar as opposed to that of their adversaries. That's precisely the sort of "We're great, and nobody else's culture has any relevance" attitude which has given the US a bad name in the rest of the world. If the people in charge had any understanding of the Muslim culture, the state of "enhanced alert" would have taken place 11 days earlier. I suspect the politicians who gave the orders hadn't even been briefed that the Islamic world works to a different calendar...

I do think that the media have gone a little overboard on this occassion and need to tone down future events, no matter what they are. People who wish to remember any given event should be able to do so in their own way without having the anniversary rammed down there throats!

I gotcha now, Peet... no hurt feelings in the first place... I agree... egotistical Yankees....

I wish the media made a big deal about Memorial Day and Veteran's Day... these are both days to honor those who have gone into battle under our flag. But hardly anyone, it seems, has a direct explanation for why we celebrate Memorial Day. To a lot of us it's just an extended weekend. Yippee.

There is a United States patriotic strain in me, hiding somewhere, and that strain is touched by Lee Greenwood's words, "And I won't forget the men who died/who gave that right to me". Me.... rhyming with Free in previous lines.

Must get the to school now. Wait. Dad takes me.

Mr. I, I take it you're in the US as well, then... Over here in the UK we have "Dead Di Day", where footage of "National Mourning" is dragged out in two or three different documentaries every anniversary of Princess Di's crash, along with the latest crop of conspiracy theories and blame-passing.

Just imagine if she'd lived long enough to be in one of the towers last year...

No Peet, I'm British and proud of it (most of the time anyway!!)
I was sick and tired of footage of Di the first time around and really didn't need to be rammed down my throat again after 5 years!

Her death came on the birthday of one of my friends... His comment at the time was "Bloody great. I'll never be able to enjoy my birthday again - all the good stuff on TV will be cancelled for memorials."

So far, he's been right about that.

See what I mean??

*sigh*

Not to be annoying or mention this more than I have to, but here at uni they're having the bell that usually tolls on the quarter hours toll when planes hit things...

It's very eerie. And it feels like a lifetime ago.

Well we had a 2-minute silence and I was glared at for continuing with the call I was on!!
Sad really as it was nothing to do with us!

I still find it tragic that so many people lost their lives. But in all truth, thousands of people die daily from one disease or another or because of their religion/race/class.

Only because the media has harped on it so much is this becoming such a huge deal.

It ould have been a huge deal anyway, Amy.

That as an incredible tragedy that happened, and there's no real way for people to simply let it go.

I think it's touching that people are even mourning for us (the USA) in other countries, you know?

Oh, I'm not saying that people should let it go. Not at all. It's the fake patriotism and the complete lack of understanding why people hate America so much that gets to me.

I feel a bit unworthy to truly talk about it. I didn't know anyone who died. All of my friends have remained mostly unscathed coming out of this, even the ones who live and work on Manhattan Island.

Perhaps I should shut up before I say something that should be said.

It's okay, Amy.


Actually I feel kinda guilty because I started this day with the specific intent to ignore all of it. because of the commercialism, because of the fake patriotism, because of the millions of people who are still afraid of this crack nameless fear.

What I think people don't understand is that when you are afraid, that fear paralyses you. Completely. And if we as a nation hang onto that fear, then we're just as screwed as we were a year ago.

But let's not talk of this anymore, ya? Much happier things to speak about.

Such as: So I heard it's a code orange today, Does that mean we should beware of citrus fruit?

(Check out this flash movie, it's great, it involves citrus fruit and illiteration, and it'll make you laugh.)

http://www.rathergood.com/blode4/

"But I don't like the Orange Game"... yes, UH sent that link to me a while ago. I still laugh every time I see it.

I agree with the fear thing, by the way. I've taken the position that I as a single person can't do a whole lot and being afraid won't do me any good - so I'm gonna sit here and be happy cause the sky is blue, because it's been raining off and on and we need it, because I'm in love, because the sun shines through my window this time of day in the perfect way, because flute music is beautiful necessarily.

Ignoring facts? Perhaps.

But I'm not living in fear. And I'm glad I'm not.

http://www.spacegirl.me.uk/pictures/h2g2/summer2002/18.jpg - something to amuse you, Amy

YAY!!!

J'au