Eight years ago Friday was the worst day in my life. It probably was for many of you, but for me and my family it was especially bad. My eldest son was in World Trade Center Tower II.
He had just come down from the 76th floor for a smoke break when the plane hit Tower I and dropped debris on the street. In the scramble to get back into the building to avoid the shards, my son was slightly injured. He went out side, looked up… and made the second best decision he ever made (the first best being his decision to have a smoke).
He left his suit jacket, telephone, and briefcase in his office 76 floors up and started walking up town. Instinctively he knew something was very wrong. As he walked up town among the crowds of people similarly trying to put space between them and disaster, he turned and saw the second plane hit his building.
I watched on TV at work, not realizing my son’s office was in the WTC, his having just changed companies. That’s when my wife called me. The panic we experienced over the next two hours was indescribable, until we finally heard from my son that he was safe.
He was one of the lucky ones. 2,973 people were not so lucky. Their lives were snuffed out by religious fanatics who, enflamed by religious passion and heartened by the promise of a martyr’s reward in paradise, destroyed innocents. They destroyed the innocent lives of their victims, the innocent lives of the victim’s families, and the innocence of a country which had never before experienced this kind of religiously inspired violence on its shores.
And that religious inspiration led us to correctly retaliate against a religion dominated Afghanistan. And a religious zealot in the Oval Office took us into another war with “God on our side” to battle “Gog and Magog” the demons of the anti-Christ in Iraq.
Never forget what happened on 911 -- not the people who died, nor their families, and not the fact that religious delusion helped make it all possible and promulgates madness all over the globe to this day.
He had just come down from the 76th floor for a smoke break when the plane hit Tower I and dropped debris on the street. In the scramble to get back into the building to avoid the shards, my son was slightly injured. He went out side, looked up… and made the second best decision he ever made (the first best being his decision to have a smoke).
He left his suit jacket, telephone, and briefcase in his office 76 floors up and started walking up town. Instinctively he knew something was very wrong. As he walked up town among the crowds of people similarly trying to put space between them and disaster, he turned and saw the second plane hit his building.
I watched on TV at work, not realizing my son’s office was in the WTC, his having just changed companies. That’s when my wife called me. The panic we experienced over the next two hours was indescribable, until we finally heard from my son that he was safe.
He was one of the lucky ones. 2,973 people were not so lucky. Their lives were snuffed out by religious fanatics who, enflamed by religious passion and heartened by the promise of a martyr’s reward in paradise, destroyed innocents. They destroyed the innocent lives of their victims, the innocent lives of the victim’s families, and the innocence of a country which had never before experienced this kind of religiously inspired violence on its shores.
And that religious inspiration led us to correctly retaliate against a religion dominated Afghanistan. And a religious zealot in the Oval Office took us into another war with “God on our side” to battle “Gog and Magog” the demons of the anti-Christ in Iraq.
Never forget what happened on 911 -- not the people who died, nor their families, and not the fact that religious delusion helped make it all possible and promulgates madness all over the globe to this day.
Hey Dromedary Hump,
ReplyDeleteI am a recent subscriber to your site, and I love the work your doing. Keep it up. I hope people remember the reason 9/11 happened almost as much as the tragedy itself.
My own blog is underway. If you get a chance, check it out at selftaughtatheist.blogspot.com. Look forward to your next post.
Hump,
ReplyDeleteI didn't know. It was a sad day for us all, but more horrible for those more directly effected.
I will never forget nor forgive.
I cannot even begin to fathom the sheer terror you and Mrs. Hump must have felt. I was on vacation and watching it on the news, and still remember how I felt. But for religious delusions, the Twin Towers would still be standing and who knows how many people would still be alive. Give you son an extra hug today.
ReplyDeleteCNN.com is currently running a story about the vairous memorials. I'm glad to see that they are observing "moments of silence" instead of prayers, but it's disturbing to see folks in the crowd holding up signs that say "God Bless America". Obviously they don't get it.
ReplyDeleteHump, glad your some wasn't one of the ones that paid the price.
Cheers.
ReplyDeleteAwesome post! I don't think anyone could have said it better.
ReplyDeleteCheers...
Thanks everyone.
ReplyDeleteSeek glad to have you.
Texas Mike...you said you may drop in..you did...thanks!
Hump
Hey Hump,
ReplyDeleteJust found out about your site and had to subscribe immediately! Keep up the good work. I plan on being a regular and plunking down some cash and getting your book.
My deconversion from Christianity started on Sept. 11th 2001, after seeing the towers fall and finding out why they did, I had to cling to my "one true faith" so I started reading the bible... needless to say I didn't make it out of Deuteronomy before rejecting all 3 of the Abrahamic faiths. I had always been a doubting Thomas but after that I realized I had two choices, 1) morality 2) faith, the choice seemed obvious.
My complete conversion into atheism, nontheism, anti-theism came after watching a few Penn and Teller Bullshit episodes and reading the God Delusion. I have become more vocal about it the past year or so. I have managed to drag a couple of my loved ones into hedonism with me (or at least present facts to them that has allowed them to make there own minds up).
Anyway great site, I hope to contribute to the blog in a positive way
thanks again,
zarton
Zarton,
ReplyDeleteWelcome! Thanks so much for your kind words and joining us.
But more importantly, congratulations on a successful journey into reality.
Looking forward to your regular input here.
Yours in reason,
Hump
It has always stunned me that people would disobey one of their supposed god's most basic laws, "Thou Shalt Not Kill", just because someone tells them to.
ReplyDelete"oh, if I kill some people, god will looooove me!"
My sympathy goes out to you and your family, Hump. I cannot imagine how horrified and angry you must have been. (And at the same time thankful your son smoked.)
ReplyDeleteI was in Canada at the time, New Brunswick, to be precise. I have to say that the Canadian news footage and commentary for months after that was.... disturbing. Even with as much emotional support as the Canadians seemed to want to give there was also this strange undercurrent of reproach toward America.