PATRIOT DAY
COMPILATION AND COMMENTARY
BY LUCY WARNER
SEPTEMBER 11, 2018

THIS IS MY GENERATION’S DAY OF INFAMY. THE ORIGINAL, OF COURSE, IS BETTER KNOWN AS PEARL HARBOR DAY. ON DECEMBER 7, 1941, A SQUADRON OF JAPANESE FIGHTERS BOMBED AND DESTROYED A LARGE NUMBER OF AMERICAN WARSHIPS THAT WERE RESTING IN PEARL HARBOR, HAWAII. THAT WAS BEFORE WAR HAD BEEN DECLARED BY EITHER SIDE, AMERICA AND JAPAN WERE STILL DISCUSSING PEACE TERMS. UNDERSTANDABLY, AMERICANS VILIFIED THE ACTION AS “A SNEAK ATTACK,” WHICH IT CERTAINLY WAS, AND IT WAS FOLLOWED SWIFTLY BY FRANKLIN D ROOSEVELT’S DECLARATION OF WAR. TO READ ABOUT THAT STIRRING SPEECH, GO TO WIKIPEDIA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infamy_Speech. IN THE FIRST LINE OF THE SPEECH ROOSEVELT DESCRIBES DECEMBER 7 AS “A DATE WHICH WILL LIVE IN INFAMY". THE SPEECH IS ALSO COMMONLY REFERRED TO AS THE "PEARL HARBOR SPEECH.’”

THIS 21ST CENTURY DAY OF INFAMY WAS ANOTHER TRULY DESPICABLE ACTION BY AN ISLAMIST LEADER NAMED OSAMA BIN LADEN. HE SENT A TEAM OF SOME DOZEN OF HIS FOLLOWERS, ALL ZEALOTS OF AN EXTREME FORM OF FUNDAMENTALIST ISLAM, WHO HAD BEEN WHIPPED UP INTO A SEETHING RAGE AT THE USA BY BIN LADEN, BASED ON THE BELIEF THAT THE USA WAS THEIR DEADLY ENEMY. BIN LADEN’S NICKNAME FOR US WAS “THE GREAT SATAN.”

SEVERAL THINGS ARE BEHIND THAT VIEW OF EUROPEAN CHRISTIANS, BEGINNING IN THE MIDDLE AGES IN A LONG SERIES OF WARS OVER WHO WAS TO POSSESS AND RULE “THE HOLY LAND.” WE DIDN’T SEE IT THIS WAY AT THE TIME, BUT IT WAS THE ISLAMIC HOLY LAND ALSO. SO, ONE NAME THAT BIN LADEN USED FOR US IS “CRUSADERS.” THE MOST HATED ISSUE TO ISLAMIC RADICALS IN MODERN TIMES, THOUGH, IS THE CREATION OF THE JEWISH STATE OF ISRAEL IN AN AREA WHICH WAS CARVED OUT FROM THE PALESTINIAN TERRITORY BY AN INTERNATIONAL BODY AFTER WWII, AND WITHOUT THEIR APPROVAL. I CAN UNDERSTAND HOW THEY FEEL, BUT SOMETHING NEEDS TO STOP IN THIS INSANE SET OF INTERLINKED WARS. THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN PEOPLE BELIEVE IN “AN EYE FOR AN EYE AND A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH.” OUR VERY CLOSE CONNECTION WITH ISRAEL PULLS US INTO THAT ANCIENT MORASS OF HATRED AS A THIRD PARTY.

OF COURSE, AFTER THE HORRENDOUS ATTACK ON NEW YORK CITY ON SEPTEMBER 11, 2001, WE DID THEN RESPOND IN KIND BY ATTACKING AFGHANISTAN TO GET TO BIN LADEN, AND THE WHOLE TANGLED BALL OF YARN BECAME A NOOSE FROM WHICH WE COULDN’T SEE FIT TO EXTRACT OURSELVES. MORE IRRATIONALLY, WHEN OUR PRESIDENT AT THE TIME, GEORGE W BUSH, WENT ON TO ATTACK IRAQ AS WELL, THOUGH BIN LADEN’S FOLLOWERS WERE NOT YET IN IRAQ IN GREAT NUMBERS. IT IS A FOREGONE CONCLUSION, THOUGH, THAT OUR PRESENCE THERE SOON DREW IN BIN LADEN’S FOLLOWERS, KNOWN AS AL-QAEDA. DISHONOR STARTS WARS, AND HONOR PROLONGS THEM. THE SIMPLE FACT IS THAT MEN LOVE MACHINES, PARTICULARLY MACHINES OF WAR, AND WE ARE A MALE-DOMINATED SOCIETY. EVEN NOW THERE HAS BEEN NO CLEAN, CLEAR-CUT “ENDING” TO THIS DRAMA, SO WE ARE STILL INVOLVED MILITARILY IN IRAQ, AFGHANISTAN, SYRIA AND PERHAPS PAKISTAN AS WELL. DID I LEAVE OUT IRAN? THAT MAY BE NEXT. THERE’S A NUCLEAR QUESTION THERE, AFTER ALL. WE SAY THEY ARE PREPARING TO MAKE NUCLEAR WEAPONS, THEY SAY THAT THEY ARE SIMPLY INSTALLING NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS, OR SOMETHING TO THAT EFFECT. I SAY THAT EVEN IF A NATION DOES TRY TO HAVE THEIR VERY OWN NUCLEAR TOYS, THAT DOESN’T MEAN THAT WE HAVE TO DISARM THEM.

THE END DID COME FOR BIN LADEN, HOWEVER, ON MAY 2, 2011 WHEN PRESIDENT OBAMA SENT A SELECT TEAM OF NAVY SEALS AND CIA AGENTS IN TWO HELICOPTERS INTO BIN LADEN’S SECRET COMPOUND IN PAKISTAN IN THE WEE HOURS OF THE MORNING AND ASSASSINATED HIM IN HIS BED. SOME WILL SAY THAT WASN’T THE SPORTING WAY TO DO IT – NOT HONEST – BUT NOBODY EVER DESERVED TO BE KILLED MORE THAN BIN LADEN (UNLESS IT’S ADOLPH HITLER AND HALF A DOZEN OTHER DESPOTS SINCE I’VE BEEN AWARE OF WHAT WAS HAPPENING IN THE WORLD).

DON’T THINK BY THIS STATEMENT THAT I AM A HATER OF THE ISLAMIC RELIGION OR PEOPLE, BECAUSE I AM NOT; BUT SOMETIMES VENGEANCE IS INDEED BOTH JUST AND SWEET. VERY FEW AMERICANS FEEL THAT KILLING BIN LADEN DIDN’T TRULY NEED TO BE DONE. NO MAN SHOULD HAVE GOTTEN AWAY WITH WHAT HE DID.


SEPT. 11, 2001 TO TODAY

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/christopher-wray-fbi-director-911-terrorism/
CBS NEWS September 11, 2018, 8:20 AM
FBI Director Christopher Wray: "Terrorism today moves at the speed of social media"

The FBI has made a great deal of changes in its structure and mindset in the 17 years since Sept. 11, 2001. Christopher Wray took the reins of the bureau just over a year ago. He and the men and women who keep Americans safe from terrorism have been busier than ever.

The Joint Terrorism Task Force, which includes the FBI and other federal, state and local agencies, receives about 15,000 tips a year. That's roughly 40 per day or two an hour.

In an interview you'll see only on "CBS This Morning," co-host Norah O'Donnell spoke to Wray about why he believes the FBI is far better prepared to counter terror threats than it was in 2001.

NORAH O'DONNELL: Do you think another 9/11-style attack could happen today?

CHRISTOPHER WRAY: Well, I would say this, we are dramatically better positioned, the FBI is a totally different kind of organization in a lot of ways.

We met with the FBI director last week at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum in New York, where he spoke with first responders still suffering from exposure to the toxic conditions at Ground Zero 17 years ago.

"You fought to make sure that what happened that day would never ever happen again. So let us help you now," Wray told them.

O'DONNELL: 9/11 completely changed how the FBI does business. How has the threat changed?

WRAY: So I think the threat, today's terrorism threat, still includes sleeper cells, al Qaeda, all the kind of major terrorist organizations that you would think of, but we're also very focused now on homegrown violent extremists, which are people who are largely here already, in the United States. … Big cities, small towns, coast to coast. And these are people who are largely radicalized online.

O'DONNELL: How do you keep them from becoming radicalized online?

WRAY: Well, the online issue is a challenge, right? I mean, terrorism today moves at the speed of social media. The part of it is engaging with social media companies in a way to try to get them to do certain things they can do voluntarily.

O'DONNELL: And is Silicon Valley being helpful?

WRAY: We're getting much better cooperation than we used to. … I think there's a view that this is a shared threat. … We all have kids. We all have family members. We all have potential victims.

O'DONNELL: Can you say how many terrorist attacks you've thwarted in the past year?

WRAY: In the last year, or so, we've thwarted attacks in San Francisco on the pier. … We've prevented an attack in a shopping mall in Miami… We prevented an attack in Cleveland, on the July Fourth holidays, where… there would have been thousands of people to celebrate our freedom. … We had about 1,000 investigations into just these homegrown violent extremists. That's out of about 5,000 terrorism investigations.

O'DONNELL: Right, that doesn't even include the ISIS or al Qaeda-related.

WRAY: Doesn't include ISIS, doesn't include al Qaeda, it doesn't include domestic terrorism even. … This is a significant issue. We had about 120 arrests, terrorism-related arrests, last year alone. That's just in the arrest context. So there's a lot happening every day, 365 days a year right now in the terrorism front.

Watch Part II of Norah O'Donnell's interview with FBI Director Christopher Wray Thursday, Sept. 13, on "CBS This Morning."

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.


THIS MAY BE THE ADDRESS THAT PRESIDENT TRUMP WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR AS TIME GOES ON. IT IS SHORT, BUT IN MY OPINION BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN AND NARRATED.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-marks-911-anniversary-in-shanksville-pennsylvania-live-stream/
CBS NEWS September 11, 2018, 9:51 AM
Trump commemorates 9/11 anniversary at Flight 93 memorial

President Trump marked the 17th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on American soil by remembering the victims and heroes of Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

"Today, we mourn their loss, we share their story, and we commemorate their incredible valor," Mr. Trump said Tuesday of the Americans who died on that fateful flight 17 years ago.

"Your tears are not shed alone, for they are shared grief with an entire nation," the president added.

An open field in the rural area of Pennsylvania was the final resting place for passengers aboard United Airlines Flight 93 that September morning after three planes had already been flown into the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. Passengers and crew stormed the cockpit after realizing their plane was being used in the next attack. It crashed in the open area killing all on board.

A new monument added to the 2,200-acre memorial in honor of the heroes aboard that flight was dedicated on Sunday.

Mr. Trump said the field is now a "monument to American defiance."

"America's future is not written by our enemies," he said. "America's future is written by our heroes. As long as this monument stands, as long as this memorial endures, brave patriots will rise up in America's hours of need and they, too, will fight back."

Mr. Trump largely stuck to his prepared remarks Tuesday, although earlier in the day he blasted the Justice Department and Russia probe in tweets.

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.



THE TOWER OF VOICES

THIS IS THE MOST IMPRESSIVE TRIBUTE THAT I’VE SEEN. THE MELODIOUS AND DELICATE SOUND COMING FROM IT -- AS PORTRAYED IN THIS NATIONAL PARK SERVICES WEBSITE -- IS SO MOVING. IT’S ALSO, AS A STRUCTURE, TRULY ELEGANT, AND THE WIND CHIMES WILL MOVE, WHICH KEEPS THE EYES FOCUSED ON IT. IT REMINDS ME OF THE THE MOBILES THAT AMERICAN SCULPTOR ALEXANDER CALDER CREATED AND PLACED IN VARIOUS PLACES. A WIND CAN CAUSE THEM TO MOVE IN CHARMING WAYS. SEE THE THREE ARTICLES BELOW ON THE TOWER OF VOICES.


https://www.nps.gov/flni/getinvolved/tower-of-voices.htm
Flight 93
National Memorial
Pennsylvania

PHOTOGRAPH -- The Tower of Voices is conceived as a monumental, ninety-three feet tall musical instrument holding forty wind chimes, representing the forty passengers and crew members. The intent is to create a set of forty tones (voices) that can connote through consonance the serenity and nobility of the site while also through dissonance recalling the event that consecrated the site.
Artwork courtesy of bioLinia and Paul Murdoch Architects.

Tower of Voices Project Description

Overview
The Tower of Voices serves as both a visual and audible reminder of the heroism of the forty passengers and crew of United Flight 93. On September 09, 2018 Flight 93 National Memorial will host a dedication event to complete the final phase of construction and complete the permanent memorial.

The tower is conceived as a monumental, ninety-three feet tall musical instrument holding forty wind chimes, representing the forty passengers and crew members. It is intended to be a landmark feature near the memorial entrance, visible from US Route 30/Lincoln Highway. The Tower of Voices will provide a living memorial in sound to remember the forty through their ongoing voices.

The tower project will be constructed from 2017 to 2018 with a dedication of the project on September 9, 2018. Funding for the design and construction of the project is provided through private donations to the National Park Foundation and the Friends of Flight 93 National Memorial.

Uniqueness of Design
There are no other chime structures like this in the world. The shape and orientation of the tower are designed to optimize air flow through the tower walls to reach the interior chime chamber. The chime system is designed using music theory to identify a mathematically developed range of frequencies needed to produce a distinct musical note associated with each chime. The applied music theory allows the sound produced by individual chimes to be musically compatible with the sound produced by the other chimes in the tower. The intent is to create a set of forty tones (voices) that can connote through consonance the serenity and nobility of the site while also through dissonance recalling the event that consecrated the site.

Design Features
The tower is approximately ninety-three feet tall from the base to the top with some height variations. The Tower cross section is a “C” shape with a fifteen foot outside diameter and eleven foot inside diameter. The “C” shape allows sound to reflect outwardly from the open side in a fan-shaped pattern. The chimes will be suspended a minimum of twenty feet above the main plaza and will be suspended from the interior walls of the tower up to the top.

The tower walls will be constructed of precast concrete segments linked by connectors. The chimes will be constructed of polished aluminum tubes ranging eight to sixteen inches in diameter and approximately five to ten feet in length. The size of each chime is dependent on the musical note and associated frequency that it is intended to produce. Chimes of this size and magnitude do not currently exist in the world. The chimes are wind activated and will have internal strikers attached to sails projecting from the bottom of each chime.

Surrounding Landscape
The tower is located on an oval concrete plaza that is built on top of an earth mound to create an area more prominent on the landscape. The plaza includes two curved concrete benches facing the opening of the tower.

The tower is surrounded by concentric rings of white pines and deciduous plantings. The concentric plantings may be interpreted as resonating “sound waves” from the Tower, alluding to the auditory qualities of the chimes housed within. A direct paved path leads to the tower from the parking lot. A longer, meandering crushed stone path winds through the trees and allows visitors an alternative approach to the tower. All other landscaped areas of the project will be planted with a native wildflower seed mix similar to other landscaped areas of the park.

Tower of Voices Wind Chimes Simulation
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Duration Time 5:48

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Audio File Info

This file is a simulation and is not a recording of actual chimes. The file is about 5 minutes and 48 seconds long and represents what may be heard with multiple chimes in the Tower of Voices.

DURATION:5 minutes, 48 seconds
CREDIT / AUTHOR:Sam Pellman
DATE CREATED:2017-09-08

Tower of Voices - Live Webcam

Tower of Voices Construction
Construction of the Tower of Voices began in 2017. The tower was dedicated on Sunday, September 9, 2018, during a special ceremony at 1:00 pm. You can view the Tower of Voices, now nearly complete, at the Friends of Flight 93 Memorial website.



“LOVED ONES WHO FOUND HEROES WITHIN ....” THAT IS SUCH A BEAUTIFUL PHRASE, AND EXPLAINS WHAT HEROISM IS. IT IS ALL OF US AT SOME TIME OR ANOTHER WHEN THE TIME OF NEED COMES. SOMETIMES JUST CONTINUING TO LIVE IS HEROIC. THIS AIRPLANE FULL OF ORDINARY CITIZENS RESPONDED TO THEIR COMING DEATH IN THIS WONDERFUL WAY – BY PREVENTING THE DEATHS OF DOZENS MORE ON THE GROUND.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/heroes-of-flight-93-remembered-at-tower-of-voices-memorial-shanksville-pennsylvania/
By CHIP REID CBS/AP September 11, 2018, 6:56 PM
Heroes of Flight 93 remembered at "Tower of Voices" memorial

SHANKSVILLE, Pa. — The names of the 40 passengers and crew members of Flight 93 were read solemnly aloud Tuesday near the field where their lives were lost on 9/11.

Soon after Flight 93 took off it was hijacked by terrorists. Passengers and crew members phoned loved ones and learned that two planes had already struck the World Trade Center towers.

They voted, and decided to act.

"They bravely charged the cockpit. They attacked the enemy. They fought until the very end," President Trump said at Tuesday's ceremony.

On Sunday, the "Tower of Voices" was dedicated here, the final piece of a new memorial. When finished, it will contain 40 wind chimes intended to recall the voices of the passengers and crew in their final heartbreaking calls and voicemails.

PHOTOGRAPH -- tower-of-voices-chimes-flight-93-national-memorial-620.jpg
In Shanksville, Pa., at the site of the crash of Flight 93, the "Tower of Voices" remembers the 40 passengers and crew who heroically thwarted their hijackers' plans. CBS NEWS

Gordon Felt is president of the Families of Flight 93. His brother, Ed Felt, was a passenger on the plane.

Trump commemorates 9/11 anniversary at Flight 93 memorial

"For me, the Tower of Voices is a symbol of defiance — 93 feet tall, standing at the entrance to this memorial, defiantly speaking for our loved ones," Felt said.

Loved ones who found heroes within — and who will be honored here for countless generations to come.

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.



“PATRIOT DAY IS NOT A FEDERAL HOLIDAY AND SCHOOLS AND BUSINESSES DO NOT CLOSE.” I DO STRONGLY THINK THAT PATRIOT DAY SHOULD BE A FEDERAL HOLIDAY, AND SINCE THAT NAME IS ALMOST IDENTICAL TO “PATRIOT’S DAY” WE SHOULD GIVE IT ANOTHER NAME. WHAT I FELT WHEN THAT EVENT HAPPENED WAS GRIEF. WE NEED TO COMMEMORATE THAT.

https://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/us/patriot-day
Patriot Day in the United States

Patriot Day is an annual observance on September 11 to remember those who were injured or died during the terrorist attacks in the United States on September 11, 2001. Many Americans refer Patriot Day as 9/11 or September 11.

Observe Patriot Day

On the direction of the President, the flag of the United States of America should be displayed on the homes of Americans, the White House and all United States government buildings in the whole world. The flag should be flown at half-staff as a mark of respect to those who died on September 11, 2001. Many people observe a moment of silence at 8:46 AM (Eastern Daylight Time). This marks the time that the first plane flew into the World Trade Center. Some communities, particularly in the areas directly affected by the attacks, hold special church services or prayer meetings. People who personally experienced the events in 2001 or lost loved ones in them, may lay flowers or visit memorials.

Public Life

Patriot Day is not a federal holiday and schools and businesses do not close. Public transit systems run on their regular schedules. Some people and organizations may take some time out to hold prayers for the victims of the attacks, but these do not usually affect public life for more than a few minutes.

About Patriot Day

On September 11, 2001, four planes were hijacked. The hijackers then deliberately flew three of the planes into two important buildings, the Pentagon in Washington DC and the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York. The fourth crashed into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The loss of life and damage that these hijackings caused form the biggest act of terrorism ever on United States soil. Nearly 3000 people died in the attacks and the economic impact was immense.

The attacks have greatly increased attention to national security in the United States. This has had huge implications for United States national and international politics. This is particularly true for the relationships between the United States and Islamic countries in the Middle East.

Symbols

The most potent symbol of the events that happened on September 11, 2001 are pictures and videos of planes flying into buildings, of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center engulfed in smoke and later collapsing and of people falling from buildings. Pictures taken of damaged buildings and relatives looking for loved ones in the days and weeks after the attacks are also often shown. The flag of the United States is often displayed around images of the events on September 11, 2001. This is to remind Americans that their country remained strong in the face of massive terrorist attacks.

Patriot Day should not be confused with Patriot’s Day, also known as Patriots Day, which commemorates the battles of Lexington and Concord in 1775, which were two of the earliest battles in the American Revolutionary War.