DEBATES: Life Since Sept. 11 (very revealing comments)

New York Times ^ | June 1 2002 | NYT readers

[Senator Pardek]

I'll add my own comments.

I live about 35 miles from Ground Zero. Someone at this board had commented that, in concentric circles, the amount of anguish felt by folks due to this can be measured.

Please do not misconstrue this as a put-down of folks in "fly over country"; I'm the first to admit they're the most patriotic and caring "salt of the earth" folks in the nation - but just as I can never truly understand the grief of the escapees and eyewitnesses, others will never know what I feel.

The love and support that poured in from Middle America, both emotional and financial, was unprecedented. Please do not feel insulted or short-changed: feel lucky.

I do.

[Brad’s Gramma]

BTTT

[Senator Pardek]

I agree - I thought this was most insightful - but what do we know?

[Brad’s Gramma]

Me? Not much.

:-)

[Senator Pardek]

I appreciate your response. Here's what it boils down to - we're all Americans under the skin, and we share a mutual feel for justice being meted out.

[DemoSmear]

I could do nothing, NOTHING at all, for the people leaning out of windows. Pause and just think of what that feels like. To know HELPLESSNESS as a physical sensation and not a word you've read.

.

[McGavin999]

You are right, we'll never know the pain you must feel. But it must be horrendous because our hearts are still breaking for you all.

Eight month after 9-11 the tears still spring to my eyes every time I see a fire engine. I can't even imagine what it must be like for the people of New York. If it brings any comfort, you should know that the folks in flyover country realized how much we all love our fellow Americans and your pain is our pain.

[Senator Pardek]

Thanks, folks. I thought I would get flamed for my comments.

[abner]

I am amazed at the difference between the east and the mid west. I am in Minnesota this weekend and I am shocked at the lack of flags and signs of patriotism.

I don't doubt the patriotism of the people here either, I do think the proximity has made a difference in how people look at these events. My father and I were talking about this today. He lives here in Minnesota and thinks that because most people here didn't personally know people that died in the massacre, it is harder to really grasp the scope of what happened in NY, DC, and PA. I think that the closer you are to the carnage, the more likely you know someone that died. The other factor is that life has basically just gone on. After the initial 24/7 coverage, people just have gone on with their normal lives. We didn't get the financial depression that could have happened, and we haven't been directly attacked on our own soil again.

That there hasn't been mass panic and financial mayhem is a great credit to the current administration, but I fear that most of the country has already gone back to sleep. (Excluding FReepers of course).

[DemoSmear]

Perhaps it's because I originally hail from the east coast.
Perhaps it's because I drove by the Pentagon every day for years commuting to and from work.
Perhaps it's because I have friends and family in NY.
Perhaps it's because I've seen up close and personal just what suddenly losing a member of your family feels like.
Helplessness. You want to do so much. You want to change it-make time go backwards and somehow change the events that unfold, but you cannot.

This was a life changing event for us all. How we reacted was personal and unique.

I'm out here in flyover country and there are still many flags flying.

Senator, thanks for the post.

[McGavin999]

I don't know how things are in the midwest, but here in the southwest patriotism is a way of life. True, we've take the flags off our cars but that's because summer is coming and the sun would fade the flags faster then we could replace them.

Don't believe for a minute that we've forgotten or that we don't feel this as deeply as those in the east. Remember that most of the military comes from flyover country and we've all got someone we know who is in harms way right now. We go on because, well, that's what we do. But we haven't forgotten, we will NEVER forget.

[Senator Pardek]

That there hasn't been mass panic and financial mayhem is a great credit to the current administration, but I fear that most of the country has already gone back to sleep. (Excluding FReepers of course).

That's it in a nutshell.

[ladyinred]

Living in California, I was far away from Ground Zero. Yes, it effected me, and changed my life forever too, but I know that for those of you who live there, the pain and grief is much worse.
I never saw the Twin Towers, and for you to see the skyline all of the time must be reminder of what happened that day.
I understand most of you knew someone who died that day, I did not.
I will always feel a solidarity with NY'ers now that I didn't before. I saw a side of them that I didn't know existed. The caring, the reaching out to help strangers and the courage exhibited by New Yorkers is an inspiration to the rest of the nation.
My heart goes out to you all. I can't imagine what being there must have been like, and I know how lucky I am to be so far away.
God Bess New Yorker's!

[abner]

Hey, I'm originally from the midwest. There is a distinct difference between here (MN) and home (PA). As far as displays of patriotism anyway. In PA, there are still flags on cars everywhere, not necessarily waving ones, but stickers or magnets. Here, I have seen very few. Like I said, I'm not saying they aren't as patriotic, just farther removed from the tragedy.

[DemoSmear]

In my experience, there were always flags flying in Pennsylvania, a state filled with patriots! I bet it's even more so now. I still recall visiting small towns like Lititz, walking downs their streets and seeing all the flags waving proudly! I love central & western PA.

Minny Sota! is the land of da swedes, ya. They are a breed onto demselves, ya.

[abner]

Don't believe for a minute that we've forgotten or that we don't feel this as deeply as those in the east. Remember that most of the military comes from flyover country and we've all got someone we know who is in harms way right now. We go on because, well, that's what we do. But we haven't forgotten, we will NEVER forget.

The military is the reason that people that aren't news junkies and political junkies have been able to go on like it was before Sept. 11th. The fact that it does seem so normal is a credit to the military and the administration. I don't think people have forgotten, I do think it is just different in some ways for people on the east.

[abner]

Don't believe for a minute that we've forgotten or that we don't feel this as deeply as those in the east. Remember that most of the military comes from flyover country and we've all got someone we know who is in harms way right now. We go on because, well, that's what we do. But we haven't forgotten, we will NEVER forget.

The military is the reason that people that aren't news junkies and political junkies have been able to go on like it was before Sept. 11th. The fact that it does seem so normal is a credit to the military and the administration. I don't think people have forgotten, I do think it is just different in some ways for people on the east.

[sunshine state]

My flag still flies. It'll probably look pretty awful by the time the Florida sun gets done with it this summer but it is staying up until September 12, 2002.

Then I'll put up a new one.