American Elephants

Remember the right things

Remember those who lost family, friends and loved ones. Remember them. They still grieve.

Be there for them, but let them do the grieving. It’s time for the rest of us to stop focusing on grief and remember.

Remember those who looked up at towering infernos, smelled the burning fuel, felt the heat, heard the girders buckle and groan — then gathered their courage and charged inside. Remember, especially, those who never made it back out.

But most importantly, remember what those bastards did to us:

Remember airliners full of terrified men, women and children. Remember flight attendants with knives pressed to their throats.

Remember those trapped above the flames with no way out. Remember their calls to 911 operators. “Oh my God, I’m going to die!”

Remember the unfathomable choice forced on them, do they wait and burn alive, or do they jump 110 stories to their deaths?

Remember the bastards who did this to us.

Remember the passengers who knew. Remember telephone calls and last goodbyes. “I love you! …I’ve got to go now.” Remember how they fought back and sacrificed themselves — most likely saving the United States Congress in the process.

Remember the sound of the second plane full of people roaring in — so very low — and the explosive smack as it hit. Remember that split-second when you and I, and everyone across the country realized as one — this was no accident.

Remember everything those God-damned bastards did to us.

Remember 2,873 savage murders.

Remember, but for the grace of God, there could have been 50,000 souls in the Trade Center had it been just a little later in the morning. Remember there were to have been more hijacked flights aimed at Chicago and Los Angeles and other cities across the country. Remember the anthrax.

Remember how close they came.

They chose their targets ruthlessly. They weren’t aiming only to kill Americans — to them it was a fortunate consequence of their plan — they were aiming to destroy America.

They struck at heart of American commerce in order to destroy the economy:

They struck at the heart of American defense in order to destroy the military infrastructure:

And they tried to strike the capitol, hoping to kill as much of Congress as possible, to destroy our government’s ability to recover. Thank God they were thwarted:

What would have happened to the economy with Wall Street and the financial district destroyed and congress dead? What would have happened to the military with its leadership dead? What would have happened throughout the country with Wall Street destroyed, the military command obliterated and no federal government to put things back together?

And what would have happened when additional attacks followed — as they were meant to?

Too many people think September 11th was only about killing. It was about killing — but it was about much more than that. It was about utterly destroying the entire nation. It was about bringing down America.

Remember it all. Remember everything they did. Remember how close those evil sons of bitches came.

[Originally published 9/11/2007]