We're All Going To Die, But Three Of Us Are Going To Do Something...'

RENSE ^ | 9/12/01

[Katie_Colic]

Struggle Aboard Hijacked Plane That Crashed in Pennsylavania

9-12-1

SHANKSVILLE, Pennsylvania (AFP) - Hijackers struggled with the crew of a hijacked United Airlines jetliner that crashed here and managed to keep the plane from its suicide mission in Washington, a member of congress said Wednesday.

 

 

Representative John Murtha, who comes from the district here, said crew members likely resisted efforts by the hijackers to fly a suicide mission into the US capital city.

 

 

Asked about the target of the plane, Murtha told reporters, "The target was Washington, DC, a major target there."

 

 

Some reports said investigators believed the hijackers were trying to crash into either Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland, northwest of Washington, or the Capitol Building, the seat of the US Congress.

 

 

"I've concluded that there was a struggle on board and a heroic individual concluded, 'We're going to die, we might as well take it down here,'" Murtha said.

 

 

United Airlines Flight 93, a Boeing 757, was among four planes hijacked early Tuesday by terrorists. Two other planes crashed into the World Trade Center in New York, destroying the twin towers, and a third slammed into the Pentagon.

 

 

This plane, which left Newark, New Jersey, for San Francisco, went down at 10:06 am (1406 GMT) Tuesday in a wooded area some 100 kilometers (65 miles) southeast of Pittsburgh, killing all 45 people aboard, officials said.

 

 

The plane hit the ground at high speed, exploded in a fireball and created a crater some 30 feet (10 meters) long and 15 feet (five meters) deep.

 

 

Local emergency officials said they received a cell phone call at 9:58 am from a man who said he was a passenger aboard the flight.

 

 

The man said he had locked himself in the bathroom and told emergency dispatchers that the plane had been hijacked.

 

 

"We are being hijacked! We are being hijacked!" he was quoted as saying.

 

 

A California man identified as Tom Burnett reportedly called his wife and told her that somebody on the plane had been stabbed.

 

 

"We're all going to die, but three of us are going to do something," he told her. "I love you honey."

 

 

Officials from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) were leading the probe, assisted by the Pennsylvania state police, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration.

 

 

Investigators have cordoned off the crash site to keep onlookers out and facilitate the recovery of the two flight recorders.

 

 

The FBI has said nothing so far on the investigation, but has scheduled a press conference for noon (1600 GMT) Wednesday near the crash site.

[Katie_Colic]

These guys are true men and heroes. The White House would have been gone.

[research99]

If this check out, like from the cockpit voice recorder, then the crash site should become a federal monument, and the passengers should be awarded (posthumously) the Congressional Medal of Honor.

[Rebeckie]

Who ever said that ordinary Americans are not capable of doing extraordinary things? This is truly a defining moment in American History...there are still alot of good people out there that are willing to sacrifice their lives to save the lives of others...God Bless their families and give them comfort amongst this difficult time.

[Always Right]

There were many heroic efforts yesterday, but the men who thrawted the hijacking have to be near the top on the list.

[GWfan]

I am not happy to say that more than the White House would have been gone. It breaks my heart to read this but it deepens my resolve that if we are needed, we will serve. God bless the families of those who fought and struggled and of those who perished. They are with the Lord now. It is we who still suffer.

[Lady In Blue]

Thank you for posting this.I got misty eyed this afternoon thanking about the guy on the hijacked plan that crashed in PA.He called his wife and said that the plane was being hijacked.He went on to tell her,"I love you,have a good life and take care of the baby." That part nearly broke my heart!

[freekitty]

What brave people. My prayers are with their families. I pray that justice is swift.

[Seeking the truth]

Tom Burnett was the boss of a dear friend of mine who called me from Paris today. My friend was traveling overseas when she received word on her cell that her boss was killed. I had the pleasure of meeting him about 10 years ago. A good man. A regular guy. A dear friend as well as a boss to my friend.

Tom leaves a wife and three children.

May God rest the soul of this true hero.

[AD from SpringBay]

Yes, these are heroes.

[Vigilanteman]

We know the names of at least two of the three heros now-- Jeremy Glick (named in a Yahoo news site) and Tom Burnett, named here. A poem in their honor, in the honor of the unnamed third hero and any others who participated:

In Tribute to the Heros of UA 93

IF God compel thee to this destiny,
To die alone, with none beside thy bed
To ruffle round with sobs thy last word said
And mark with tears the pulses ebb from thee,-
Pray then alone, ' O Christ, come tenderly !
By thy forsaken Sonship in the red
Drear wine-press,--by the wilderness out-spread,- And the lone garden where thine agony
Fell bloody from thy brow,-by all of those
Permitted desolations, comfort mine !
No earthly friend being near me, interpose
No deathly angel 'twixt my face and thine,
But stoop Thyself to gather my life's rose,
And smile away my mortal to Divine !
- Elizabeth Barrett Browning</font face>

[Katie_Colic]

These men truly deserve a monument

[BigBadWolf]

These men died with their boots on. God bless them.

[Katie_Colic]

Wonder what the Bush deriders have to say now....

That he was a chicken for not rushing to the White House at the same time a winged bomb was headed for it? I cannot believe people are criticizing him for not being at the White House sooner. In my opinion he STILL shouldn't be in Washington!

[freekitty]

I also want to say..These are the true Americans, not those who feel our pain and feel that everything should be equal and fair. How about standing up for America, your country? Americans are great and America is great. If you want to make only yourself feel good so you can pretend to look good and nothing else; get out of America. I don't know where that came from; but I am glad I said it.

[Teacher317]

Former President George Herbert Walker Bush was in the White House at the time, according to Fox News. I wonder if President George W. Bush would have been as strong if they had hit it, and he had lost his beloved father.

(I really admire the way he is avoiding any knee-jerk reactions... truly impressive)

[Rebeckie]

Well, he should not have a problem trying to pass his missile defense bill.

[ValerieUSA]

I am very upset by the probability that decent American citizens who are passengers on board airliners will be disarmed forever and have to resort to suicidal efforts to protect themselves and the people on the ground when foreign terrorists fly the friendly skies with them.

These heroes who wrestled control from the hijackers and crashed the plane into the woods when they heard from their relatives on cell phones about the other planes that had crashed into the W T C - they deserved to be armed.

Treating every citizen as if we are potential terrorists will not effectively increase national security. We are our own first line of defense -- and ordinary citizens sacrificed themselves to save the White House from destruction.

We are not the enemy.

[Nov3]

My God I would feel honored to know him

[Irma]

This is an undated family photo of Thomas E. Burnett,
           Jr., who was a passenger aboard the hijacked United
           flight 93 which crashed in rural western Pennsylvania
           with 45 people aboard, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001.
           Burnett, 38, called his wife moments before the
           hijacked plane crashed. "He said, 'I know we're all
           going to die - there's three of us who are going to do
           something about it,'" Burnett told his wife, Deena. (AP
           Photo)
 

[Rocko]

The US Strategic Command Headquarters is not in the White House.

[nmh]

These three men certainly ARE heros. Where they landed, emphasizes their heroics. Still, I have a question, HOW do they know for sure, what the destination was? How do they know this? Isn't this speculation or were their intercepted cell phone calls discussing this?

[Irma]

Here's a pic......

[Nov3]

Their flight route was taking them roughly over Camp David or Washington DC according to Fox earlier

[FormerLurker]

If this checks out, like from the cockpit voice recorder, then the crash site should become a federal monument, and the passengers should be awarded (posthumously) the Congressional Medal of Honor.

I'd second that, but like to suggest that even if they DON'T find the cockpit voice recorder, they follow through with the Medal of Honor and a monument. God bless those brave souls.

[Dakotabound]

"We're all going to die, but three of us are going to do something"

This is the statement for the ages.

They didn't plan on the American character.

They thought we'd cower, we'd be afraid. We wouldn't act.

Instead, especially when the objective was known, we gladly give our lives quicker to save others...not to hurt, but to heal.

That's the difference.

[Dick Bachert]

``To every man upon this earth
Death cometh soon or late.
And how can man die better
Than facing fearful odds,
For the ashes of his fathers,
And the temples of his gods,
``And for the tender mother
Who dandled him to rest,
And for the wife who nurses
His baby at her breast,
And for the holy maidens
Who feed the eternal flame,
To save them from false Sextus
That wrought the deed of shame?
``Haul down the bridge, Sir Consul,
With all the speed ye may;
I, with two more to help me,
Will hold the foe in play.
In yon strait path a thousand
May well be stopped by three.
Now who will stand on either hand,
And keep the bridge with me?''

“Horatius” by Thomas Babbington Macaulay

(Search out the entire poem. It will bring tears to your eyes in much the same way the heroic actions of those men in that doomed plane over Pennsylvania brought tears to mine. May God rest their souls!)

[CROSSHIGHWAYMAN]

Americans always seem to be at their best when things are at their worst

[MinorityRepublican]

Thank God for the heroic acts of these brave men and women. They truly died for all of us.

[MVV]

These men should be honored and their surviving families given the highest civilian award in honor of their names!

What a story of bravery! God bless these men and their families!

God Bless America! Fly your flags proudly FReepers, a symbol of freedom in this great nation!

[Seeking the truth]

He told his wife that the hijackers had announced where they are going. That's why he decided to take action. He knew he would die but he still did it - and succeeded.

[Seeking the truth]

He told his wife that the hijackers had announced where they are going. That's why he decided to take action. He knew he would die but he still did it - and succeeded.

[Lady In Blue]

I agree! And I don't think he'll have any problems getting drilling in ANWR approved.

[Keyes For President]

Thank God for these brave heroes. May God bless and comfort their families.

[Seeking the truth]

Here is the press release that his company has issued.

Home > Investor Relations > Press Releases

Thoratec Corporation Says Chief Operating Officer Thomas E. Burnett, Jr. Was One of the Victims in Crash of United Flight on Tuesday

    PLEASANTON, Calif., Sept. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Thoratec Corporation
(Nasdaq: THOR) said today that Thomas E. Burnett, Jr., the company's senior
vice president and chief operating officer, was a victim of Tuesday's crash of
United Airlines Flight 93 outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  Burnett, age
38, joined the company in 1996 as vice president, sales and marketing, and was
named senior vice president and chief operating officer in 1999.
    "This is  a great professional and personal loss for all of us at
Thoratec. Tom made many significant contributions to our company. We are all
shocked and saddened by today's senseless and ruthless acts that took from us
our friend and colleague.  He will be greatly missed.  Our thoughts and
prayers are with his family," said D. Keith Grossman, president and chief
executive officer.
    Thoratec Corporation is engaged in the research, development,
manufacturing and marketing of medical devices for circulatory support,
vascular graft, blood coagulation and skin incision applications.
Headquartered in Pleasanton, California, the company also has facilities in
Woburn and Chelmsford, Massachusetts, Rancho Cordova, California, and Edison,
New Jersey. For more information, visit the company's web sites at
http://www.thoratec.com or http://www.itcmed.com.

                    MAKE YOUR OPINION COUNT -  Click Here
               http://tbutton.prnewswire.com/prn/11690X03865225

SOURCE  Thoratec Corporation








 
Web site:  http://www.thoratec.com 
 

 
CONTACT: Wayne Boylston, Chief Financial Officer of Thoratec,
+1-925-847-8600


		

Copyright © 2001, Thoratec Corporation | Disclaimer | Created by PixelMEDIA, Inc.

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[rb22982]

I agree.

True American Patriots

[Katie_Colic]

These are the true Americans, not those who feel our pain and feel that everything should be equal and fair. How about standing up for America, your country? Americans are great and America is great. If you want to make only yourself feel good so you can pretend to look good and nothing else; get out of America. I don't know where that came from; but I am glad I said it.

I'm not totally sure what we mean, but I totally agree!

[nomad]

"Greater love has no man then to lay down his life for another". I am proud to be an American, God bless these patriots, and God bless the USA. With his help, we will win this war.

[Katie_Colic]

He looks so...AMERICAN. This photo brought my husband and me to tears.

[Katie_Colic]

I don't think they can get the Medal of Honor since they were civilians, but isn't there some other citation they could be given? Can anyone help me out here?

[ladyinred]

Did anyone else see the Mother of one of the men on the Today Show today? She was a remarkable woman. Seeing her you understand why her son was such a hero. BTW: These three men fit the real description of Hero, unlike so many others who are falsely called heroes.
God bless their families.

[Orion78]

The Patriotic Spirit shines through in America's darkest hour. These men should be honored.

[B-Cause]

An open letter to a terrorist:

Well, you hit the World Trade Center, but you missed America. You hit the Pentagon, but you missed America. You used helpless American bodies, to take out other American bodies, but like a poor marksman, you STILL missed America.

Why? Because of something you guys will never understand. America isn't about a building or two, not about financial centers, not about military centers, America isn't about a place, America isn't even about a bunch of bodies. America is about an IDEA. An idea, that you can go someplace where you can earn as much as you can figure out how to, live for the most part, like you envisioned living, and pursue Happiness. (No guarantees that you'll reach it, but you can sure try!)

Go ahead and whine your terrorist whine, and chant your terrorist litany: "If you can not see my point, then feel my pain." This concept is alien to Americans. We live in a country where we don't have to see your point. But you're free to have one. We don't have to listen to your speech. But you're free to say one. Don't know where you got the strange idea that everyone has to agree with you. We don't agree with each other in this country, almost as a matter of pride. We're a collection of guys that don't agree, called States. We united our individual states to protect ourselves from tyranny in the world. Another idea, we made up on the spot. You CAN make it up as you go, when it's your country.

If you're free enough.

Yeah, we're fat, sloppy, easy-going goofs most of the time. That's an unfortunate image to project to the world, but it comes of feeling free and easy about the world you live in. It's unfortunate too, because people start to forget that when you attack Americans, they tend to fight like a cornered badger. The first we knew of the War of 1812, was when England burned Washington D.C. to the ground. Didn't turn out like England thought it was going to, and it's not going to turn out like you think, either. Sorry, but you're not the first bully on our shores, just the most recent.

No Marquis of Queensbury rules for Americans, either. We were the FIRST and so far, only country in the world to use nuclear weapons in anger. Horrific idea, nowadays? News for you bucko, it was back then too, but we used it anyway. Only had two of them in the whole world and we used 'em both. Grandpa Jones worked on the Manhattan Project. Told me once, that right up until they threw the switch, the physicists were still arguing over whether the Uranium alone would fission, or whether it would start a fissioning chain reaction that would eat everything. But they threw the switch anyway, because we had a War to win. Does that tell you something about American Resolve?

So who just declared War on us? It would be nice to point to some real estate, like the good old days. Unfortunately, we're probably at war with random camps, in far-flung places. Who think they're safe. Just like the Barbary Pirates did. Better start sleeping with one eye open.

There's a spirit that tends to take over people who come to this country, looking for opportunity, looking for liberty, looking for freedom. Even if they misuse it. The Marielistas that Castro emptied out of his prisons, were overjoyed to find out how much freedom there was. First thing they did when they hit our shores, was run out and buy guns. The ones that didn't end up dead, ended up in prisons. It was a big PITA then (especially in south Florida), but you're only the newest PITA, not the first.

You guys seem to be incapable of understanding that we don't live in America, America lives in US! American Spirit is what it's called. And killing a few thousand of us, or a few million of us, won't change it. Most of the time, it's a pretty happy-go-lucky kind of Spirit. Until we're crossed in a cowardly manner, then it becomes an entirely different kind of Spirit.

Wait until you see what we do with that Spirit, this time. Sleep tight, if you can. We're coming.

[Lady In Blue]

I couldn't agree with you more Orion78!

[Gandalf_The_Gray]

Former President George Herbert Walker Bush was in the White House at the time, according to Fox News.

According to the local press, the senior Bush was traveling to Minneapolis (to deliver a speech)when the FAA called for the "lock-down". His flight landed at Mitchell Field in Milwaukee and he spent the night there.

Regards,
GtG

[research99]

Ok, so give them the Presidential Medal of Freedom on the next July 4th. Confirm (as best possible) the information, and don't sweat the details. We can't change the past, but instead of the 24/7 "woe is us" imagery, have the media provide at least one story where individual Americans stood up to terrorists and won!

[browneyeblue]

he,and the rest of the resistance are truely wearing wings today. PRAY NOW

[Siouxz]

Thank you for posting this.I got misty eyed this afternoon thanking about the guy on the hijacked plan that crashed in PA.He called his wife and said that the plane was being hijacked.He went on to tell her,"I love you,have a good life and take care of the baby." That part nearly broke my heart!

I just heard this on the way home from work tonight. I knew I was upset about all this, but had no idea it was so close to overflowing. I absolutely started sobbing uncontrollably and could not drive my car. I couldn't stop crying for a full five minutes.

May God bless these American heroes.

[Cindy]

[Jesse]

Medal of Freedom is highest civilian honor, but I daresay it is not enough. It is typically given to arts and science types, not people who willingly laid down their lives for their country.