I’m definitely posting this reflection a day late, but according to my own rules, these types of posts are permitted on any day of the week, so why the heck not? :D
Now, let’s get down to serious business...
9/11/2001
2977 victims died that day, and thousands more thereafter due to the toxic debris left behind. Hundreds of thousands of lives were immediately affected, and hundreds of millions of people now saw that the U.S.A. was no longer an invincible entity. No matter what you feel about the cause of the attacks, the politics, etc., we can all agree that many innocent people were killed and that this tragedy was a pivotal event in the course of our world’s modern history.
How did this affect me?
Interestingly enough, I was living rather close to where the attacks happened (but in an adjacent borough), so I didn’t really feel it… and only learned about it while I was in school because the news had spread so quickly. I recall one of my little classmates telling me that terrorists had bombed “the Empire State Building.” Funny child’s error in retrospect…
Although I was a small child, that day represented a pivotal moment in my life. At the time, I really could not comprehend the actual scope of what happened, but nevertheless it was the first I remember hearing of people being killed. It was the first time that I heard of terrorism. I also came to realize that those twin towers which I loved seeing when driving across from Manhattan… I would never see them again. They were such a symbol of power in my eyes, and they were permanently gone from our city.
After that day, I noticed a general but gradual change in the attitudes of people. Although initially this tragedy brought together many Americans in a way that no other event in recent times has brought us together, there emerged a constant, growing tension among people who did not hold the same views. Hatred between people seemed to become stronger, and often for ridiculous reasons.
It was a sharp change from the several years prior, and only something I understood to be true when reflecting back on my experiences. Everything and everyone before 9/11 just seemed to be more friendly and cordial.
Something was truly lost in the spirit of the U.S.A. shortly after that day. A little bit more than 2 decades down the line, we only see the divide between groups of people widening. In this sense, the terrorists had won. They had terrorized the unity that brought America together. Whereas before we would be able to work together despite our differences, and even respect each other, now people seem to be at each other’s throats for the slightest of differences in thought.
Can we ever get back to how we were?
This is difficult to answer. I haven’t lived long enough to experience enough cycles of social evolution to give a predictable answer. From my reading, it does appear that we go through cycles of social upheaval every so often, and it seems that we’re in the midst of one right now. I can only hope that, over time, we’ll be able to get back to a state in which we can respectfully live together.
Given the things that we know now, as well as our given access to information (both correct, incorrect, and indeterminate) on a worldwide scale, I don’t see that we can revert back to our prior nature without making a conscious effort to not let technology rule us. We have to make the effort to be the ones who rule technology, as well as our thoughts. We must have the gall to be independent thinkers.
It may be bleak of me to think that we’re not going to get there on a large scale. However, I do know that independent thinkers will stick around and continue breaking down walls (while some others will, ironically build walls). I truly don’t know what our future will bring. I just hope that we’ll find a way to live together in peace.
Conclusion
Here is a remembrance to the victims that were killed on 9/11, as well as to the society that we once had. Rather than have history repeat itself yet again, may we use the lessons of our history to learn to live in peace.
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