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

's everyone

~unhappy type hug that was supposed to be~

Welcome back, Fenchurch. What sad circumstances, though.

Where did I get the number of 200 firefighters feared dead? BBC News 24.

I assume that they know who was on duty, and who is missing, and are basing their numbers on that. Likewise the number of police missing.

Do not forget that "injured" can mean permanently paralysed, or lungs damaged so you never breathe normally again, or burns which scar for life.

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***B

Hi Yowuzupman (manly)

I hope you didn't interpret *my* remarks as US-bashing... In my opinion, Saddam Hussein should have been arrested and put on trial in a world court.. And while I hate war, I completely understand and agree with the tactics used on the road to Baghdad..

I only hope there will be a global, united effort to end terrorism, and not merely a US retaliation to this particular horror. No matter how justified it would be, there would inevitably be those in the world community who would view it as another example of US imperialism etc etc..

Peaceful kind of guy that I am, I'm still on your side, don't get me wrong, ok?

I guess I came off rather sharply in that comment......oops.....I should have lightened it up with some smilies.

I too wish that the world would unite and destroy terrorism but who knows. Maybe the lives of 10,000 persons will effect the international arena

I have just had the following email from Mostly Harmless. He says he wants to post something here but cannot get on line. So I am posting this here for him.

He says:

> I do work with a man from NY city and he had a
> brother-in-law that went through the World Trade
> Center on his way to work in a building right beside
> the WTC. There were some tense times until his
> brother-in-law finally got to a phone that work and
> called his wife/co-worker Steve's sister to say he was
> alive a well. He had to walk over 10 miles to get to a
> phone.
>
> I wanted to post something on h2g2 but the internet
> was so slow that I couldn't get to it, it kept timing
> out.
>
> Here in the States there is a cry for the blood of
> those responsible for the attack. I believe that we
> had seen the begining of a war.
>
> Mostly

Mostly we're just afraid. I expect to wake up tomorrow and hear that another horrible thing has happened.

If we find out who's responsible, there will be some serious horrible crap going on - war, more terrorism, etc.. If we can't find out who did it, then we'll live in fear. Either way it doesn't look good.

Just heard on CNN - The Speaker of the house said "I don't want to see these people brought to justice! I want to see them wiped out!"

It makes sense to want to wipe out terrorism. But hunting down people/groups in other countries, and basically declaring war on "any country that harboured these people" is insane. It is terrorism on a political scale. Whilst it is (unfortunately) natural to want revenge on the people who have offended against us, particularly in such a massive way, what is needed now is cooperation between all the nations of the world. Besides, the focus is still outside the US - what country do these people think has been 'harbouring' these terroists for the weeks, months it would have taken to organise this? I fear for the world - not because of terrorism, but because of the US response to terrorism. There is no solace to be gained from acheiving parity of body count.

In Ben's media thread I have suggested that no one has yet made comment on the simple elegance of the deadly message that has been sent today. It really doesn't matter 'who' did it, millions would have if they could have.
What matters is that the two targets, the centre of 'US/world' commerce and the Pentagon, headquarters of the US military, have been targetted and hit by persons passionate enough to die in getting out the message. As American role-model-heroes Captain Kirk or Captain Janeway themselves have often said, "Target their weapons and shields and let's see if we can get them to talk". Is this not the Starfleet way?
So, instead of planning to get even, America should be asking itself why these two institutions are so hated, and start to do something positive about it.
I fear the perpetrators will resort to less 'surgical' methods and utilise weapons of real mass destruction if America fails to get the message and begin living up to its own supposed ethics and enlightened rules of engagement.
Kaplah!

jwf

"what country do these people think has been 'harbouring' these terroists for the weeks, months it would have taken to organise this?"

I almost laughed at that, King Cthulhu. How very right you are.

"I fear for the world - not because of terrorism, but because of the US response to terrorism. "

I have felt like that since the Iran/Iraq war in the 70s...

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***B

jesus, I just read the backlog on all this, I had a pretty rough time before I found that my father was ok (he works in lower manhattan) and it made me think a lot, a lot harder about this than I would have otherwise... I think what the us does around the world may be horrible, but this is not the same, this is tens of thousands of people killed within the space of an hour and a half or so. by a select few people with (apparently) plastic knives...

?!?!?!?!?!?!? is all I know what to say, everyone I know has been glued to CNN all day

Hey I'm back, I got on through my backup connection.

ALL air traffic over the US has been grounded for at least 24 hours, maybe longer.

The good thing is that America and its government is still very strong. This act of evil and cowardice has not really hurt America. The government is still there and functioning, the American people will clear the rumble away, bury the dead, moarn, heal and go on with their lives. The American government will find out who is responsible and will attack them. And again the American people will go on surviving.

This act of murder is painful but it is nowhere near crippling blow to the US.

Mostly

I want to express my shock and horor at today's events. But I can't. The words don't exist. To everyone at h2g2 who lives in, or has family or friends in New York City or Washington DC, my thoughts and prayers are with you. I care.

If the persons with whom I live were here, they would say something like this.

Their heart and prayers are with all the New Yorkers, DC residents, families, and friends of people who are missing, known dead, or just terrified. They lived within walking distance of the World Trade Centre from age 4 to age 22. They grew up around many employees of the World Trade Institute. Their mother and brother live in 'Lower Manhattan' to this day. They have not been able to make telephone contact. The phones in that area are out, along with the power, gas, and water.

It wouldn't matter at all if they knew no one from there. It wouldn't matter if they were totally unacquainted with that amazing, busy, crazy, frenetic, and usually magical city. The sheer scope of this violence, and the use of civilian aircraft against civilians, is unfathomable. The image of that plane demolishing the second Tower is never going to go away.

Devastated and unbelieving, praying for wisdom from those who have power, and knowing nothing is ever going to be the same...

we shouldn't go on as business as usual, we must increase the focus on intellegence and being vilagent must be a part of our lives. we must be prepared to do what we say, no bluffs

for you and yours, NBY.

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***B

here take this

I'm sure they'll be ok

Here is Chicago reporting in again....

Amazing things are happening here. People are getting out of the stunned phase and moving into that lets stick together phase. It has been a hard election and much dislike between the republicans and democrat partys. These terrorists have done what the congress, the senate and the president could not do.... it is united alot of us Americans. I actually called George W., "my president". Haven't said that ever.

The good in people is coming out. People are giving blood, arranging church services for people to get together. Friends and neighbors are checking on each other, there are some areas of town that seem like a 40's wwII movie. I may scream if I hear the song "god bless america" one more time, but I think it is a good thing. People are beginning to feel less powerless.

It's taken all day to get through to h2g2.

The worst to me is hearing about the cell phone calls from the hijacked planes.

20 years ago I went to the top of the WTC while I lived in NYC. It's gone. It's just gone.

Have heard from a couple of my friends there, but not all. Since they're all theatre freaks, it's unlikely they're employed, must less were anywhere near Lower Manhattan, but it would be good to hear...

Thank you for all the good thoughts. We are all in this together.