Remembering 9/11

8:46 It was at this moment that Flight 11 crashed into the World Trade Center.

9:03 I watched on CNN, the crash of Flight 175, while on duty at the Richmond Navy Reserve Center. Within seconds, The Marines had opened the armory and locked everything down. We now know that we are under attack.

9:37 Flight 77 crashes into the Pentagon.

9:57 Flight 93 - "Let's Roll."
10:03 The passengers of Flight 93 prevent the use of their aircraft as a weapon.

74 minutes. The world changed.

God Bless the victims of 9/11.
God Bless the heroes of 9/11, too many to name.

Bow your head and say a prayer.

Nine Years After the Attack

Today, I will not be posting pictures of the attack on the Twin Towers. The images are still fresh in MY mind.

The war against jihad continues. Men and women are dying everyday in this war. Muslims, Christians, Pagans, Hindus, Jews are all dying in this war. Jihadists do not care whom they kill to advance their cause.

Nine years ago, the war that Islamists had been fighting was brought to our shores. Our first taste of it was in '79, when the Ayatollah's fanatics took our Embassy and spread his evil doctrines afar. We still did not understand the nature of our enemy even when the USS Cole was attacked. We refused to believe that the war being fought across the globe against Israel, non-radical Muslims, Christians, and Hindus could come here. To this day we STILL refuse to name the enemy officially. Today, Saudi Arabia finances mosques and madrassas across the world, including in the USA, to spread its poisonous Wahabbi doctrine.

Controversies such as the 9/11 Victory mosque, the shape of the Pennsylvania 9/11 memorial, the failure to rebuild at Ground Zero, the dismissal of experts that do not white wash Islam, the refusal to name Nidal Hissan a traitor or mention his motivation, and the continuing attempt to rename the war as something else and conduct it as a criminal investigation are all symptoms of unwillingness to acknowledge that this is a war. Congress, the administrations, and many of the people of America are scared to acknowledge that, while the majority of Muslims do not wish to commit terrorism, a great portion of them do support the actions of the jihadists, in spirit. It is only when Al Qaeda and its adherents abuse THEM that they begin to see the light.

Islam is not civilized. It has the trappings of civilization. Whole nations operate in a civilized manner. But, when its basic tenets are exposed, the basic philosophies are shown, the truth is illuminated. The 19 terrorists were not that different from the rest of Islam other than the fact that they were willing to take action. Are they that different from the suicide bombers seen throughout the Muslim world that are feted in Palestine, Iraq, Iran, and Saudi Arabia? They were only different on a matter of scale. The very fact that such acts are supported at all demonstrates that something is wrong with the philosophy of Islam and its world view.

The West is also to blame. Our refusal to understand that philosophy, our need to self-denigrate, our refusal to accept statements at face value and to follow up, all show weakness to an enemy that uses symbols to influence the audience of their cause. Our refusal to acknowledge a double standard within this country and the press endangers us.

Do you truly think that a tiny, unknown church's desire to burn Korans would have made any impact without the need for the press to trumpet the evil of the act? Where is this press when anti-Semitic acts occur? Where is the press when churches do good? Where is the condemnation of Muslims when the advocate killing people in response to any offense? The West just shrugs and states, "Well, they're Muslim. That's how they are. Can't change it. Its cultural." And so, violence and terrorism continues to succeed. Why SHOULD Islam change when violence has worked for 1400 years.

Remember, Christians may burn Korans, and be perceived as committing a wrong, even by fellow Christians.

Muslims will burn Christians and be applauded.


May God bless those that died by the actions of the terrorists.
May God grant that more heroes like those that ran into burning, collapsing buildings and those that run to the sounds of the gun, continue to be born to defend us.

God Bless America.

Myths and Facts

Middle East Myths and Facts
Joel Gilbert
Family Security Matters

9/11 Attacks

Myth: On 9/11, America was attacked by “evil” hijackers because they were “against freedom.”

Fact: America was attacked by deeply religious people with the goal of changing U.S. foreign policy to advance the cause of Islamism, the movement for revival of Islamic society from 300 years of decline. Al Qaeda wanted the U.S. to withdraw support from secular autocrats in the Muslim world, in order for Islamists to take power through free elections.

The U.S. government, in fact, changed its Middle East strategy from supporting secular Western allied governments to demanding free elections throughout the Muslim world. In the Palestinian territories this resulted in the HAMAS takeover, while the U.S. demand for free elections in Egypt and elsewhere brought Islamist gains.

Finally, the Bush administration withdrew support from U.S. ally Pervez Musharaff in Pakistan – putting the country with nuclear arms in jeopardy of an Islamist takeover. This was reminiscent of Jimmy Carter’s pushing aside U.S. ally, the Shah of Iran in 1979, as both Presidents mistakenly believed the removal of these autocrats would result in the break out of Western secular democracy.

Thus, the 9/11 attacks were successful only because America played into the hands of the Islamists when the Bush administration adopted Al Qaeda’s policy of “reform” in the Muslim world.

John McCormack in the Weekly Standard

Rally Against Holder/KSM in NYC: "The Beginning of a National Campaign"

Manhattan: Despite near freezing temperatures and steady rain, a spirited crowd of 9/11 families, first responders, and their supporters rallied this afternoon outside a federal courthouse in Manhattan to protest Attorney General Eric Holder's decision to give Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and other 9/11 conspirators the right to a civilian trial in that very court. Interspersed among the sea of umbrellas at the rally were American flags and homemade signs:

"Give Us Liberty, Give Them Death," read one. "Treating Terrorism As A Street Crime Is What Brought Us 9/11 In The First Place," said another. One took direct aim at the attorney general: "Eric Holder=Disgraceful and Despicable," and “2,921 Souls Shout: Can You Hear Us Now?”

Speakers and attendees argued that by giving enemy combatants a trial in a civilian court -- rather than a military tribunal -- Holder has needlessly put lives at risk. The decision will restrict what evidence may be used against the terrorists, could reveal intelligence secrets, and sets back the clock to September 10. “[Terrorists] declared war on us 15 years ago,” said Andy McCarthy, who prosecuted the “Blind Sheikh” following the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center. “When they declared war on us, they were using bombs, and we answered with subpoenas. They attacked, and we indicted.”

Read the rest here.

Uncle Jimbo in New York City

Don't miss my bud Uncle Jimbo Saturday in New York.

CSPAN may cover the entire rally. I would be there in person, but I'm under travel restrictions for the entire month.

Obama is Desecrating 9/11

Obama is a complete and utter disgrace. He should be hounded until he is out of office. He has surrounded himself with communists, terrorists, and bigots. He uses "crises"as opportunities to advance his Progressive agenda. He lies to the American people with a straight face. He calls on his thuggish allies to fight the American people in order to advance his agenda.

He has announced that today should be, not only a Day of Remembrance, but "the First National Day of Remembrance AND SERVICE. His words sound wonderful. His message is wonderful. If it was any president but him, I would take his words at face value. But his background makes me distrust him and look for ulterior motives. He seeks to organize the citizens and private enterprise to serve the state. Oh! Look! There it is. Look at this:

The administration's plans were outlined in an Aug. 11 White House-sponsored teleconference call run by Obama ally Lennox Yearwood, president of the Hip Hop Caucus, and Liv Havstad, the group's senior vice president of strategic partnerships and programs.

Yearwood, who uses the honorific "Reverend" before his name, has been in the news in recent years, usually for getting arrested. After Democrats took back Congress, the rowdy activist was handcuffed outside a congressional hearing in September 2007 when Gen. David Petraeus was to testify. Yearwood told the "Democracy Now" radio program that he wanted to attend the hearing to hear Petraeus give his report. "I knew that when officers lie, soldiers die," he said.

On the Aug. 11 call, Yearwood and other leaders kept saying repeatedly that they wanted 9/11 to be used for something "positive," "forward-leaning," and "productive," said a source with knowledge of the teleconference.

The plan is to turn a "day of fear" that helps Republicans into a day of activism called the National Day of Service that helps the left. In other words, nihilistic liberals are planning to drain 9/11 of all meaning.

"They think it needs to be taken back from the right," said the source. "They're taking that day and they're breaking it because it gives Republicans an advantage. To them, that day is a fearful day."

A coalition including the unsavory left-wing pressure group Color of Change and about 60 far-left, environmentalist, labor, and corporate shakedown groups participated in the call. Groups on the call included: ACORN, AFL-CIO, Apollo Alliance, Community Action Partnership, Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, 80 Million Strong for Young American Jobs, Friends of the Earth, Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, Mobilize.org, National Black Police Association, National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, National Council of Negro Women, National Wildlife Federation, RainbowPUSH Coalition, Urban League, and Young Democrats of America.

He wants to rebrand 9/11 into a day that helps the Left by changing the meaning of the day. His ilk believe that remembering the attack and honoring the victims "helps" the Republicans. They can't believe that Americans look upon this day with respect and wish to only honor the dead and remember why we are at war. They don't seem to understand that it IS a day honoring service. Those who served, saved others, and DIED. Not a day of "service" where one volunteers to "green" a community. THIS IS ABOUT THE START OF A WAR!

Furthermore, Obama has instituted in the State Department, a newly declared "Interfaith Day of Service." State employees are to plan "outreach" to Muslims and to support local mosques. When has the State Dept. ever been told to support any other religion? Any "interfaith" dialogue should be a programs encouraging the Muslim countries to, you know, ACTUALLY RESPECT OTHER RELIGIONS!

In fact, why is the State Dept. "reaching out" at all? Shouldn't the Muslims "reach out" to us? We've done more for the Muslim world than any other country combined. Except build Wahhibiist mosques.....

Pamela Geller, at American Thinker:

Why does the State Department have such a focus on "outreach" to Muslims at all - especially on 9-11?

Why does Obama have the same focus? Did the ummah (the worldwide Muslim community) ever apologize for 911? Did the ummah apologize for the Madrid train bombings, the London bombings, the Mumbai bombings, the Bali bombings, the many homicide bombings in Israel, the jihad in Thailand, the slow Hezbollah takeover of Lebanon, the Darfur genocide, the Beslan massacre, or for any other jihad activity?

This is about "smoothing over" our disagreements with the "Muslim world" and showing them that we aren't such "bad guys". Of course, to the Muslim world, this shows weakness. Only those weaker seek to entreat with the superior.

For his part, Obama said at his White House Ramadan dinner: "Islam, as we know, is part of America. Together we have a responsibility to foster engagement grounded in mutual interest and mutual respect." He said that this was one of his "fundamental commitments as president both at home and abroad. That is central to the new beginning that I've sought between the United States and Muslims around the world and that is a commitment that we can renew once again during this holy season."

"Islam is part of America"? In what way? If the immigrants to our shore respect our culture and follow our laws, then yes, MUSLIMS are part of America.

But ISLAM is antithetical to all that Americans hold dear. The followers of Sharia law do not believe in human rights or any of the freedoms we hold dear. Submission to God is the whole of the law, in a nutshell. Free will does not exist under Sharia.

This day is about WAR. And honoring those victims of murderous, fundamental Islamists that think jihad will spread Islam throughout the world.

Why should we reach out to these murderous bastards? The Islamic world is at war with the west. The west just isn't paying attention. We don't want to believe that this is so.

From a commenter at American Thinker:

Every aspect of Islam is organized to wage war, convert, subjugate or kill. The mosque is the command post, the imam the field commander, the ayatollah the general, and every Muslim a potential foot soldier in Islam's global campaign.

They abide by no civilized rules of engagement, wear no uniforms, and respect no borders, intentionally slaughtering civilians, raping, brutalizing, and intimidating, in addition to using guns, suicide bombers, and airliners to kill. 9/11 was no "terrorist attack", but an Islamic blitzkrieg against America's economic, political and military centers. It was an attempt to collapse the free world in three strokes of the sword of Allah.

We must also face the fact that the Islamic diaspora (the ummah) is engaged in a "HOT" war, killing and advancing their agenda around the planet:

- Islam against the Hindus in India
- Islam against the Catholics in the Philippines
- Islam against the Buddhists in Thailand
- Islam against the Jews in Israel, Yemen, Iran and even S. America (wherever Jews exist)
- Islam against the Coptic Christians in Egypt
- Islam against the Christians and animists in the Sudan
- Islam against the Christians in N. Nigeria
- Islam against the Chaldean Christians in Iraq
- Islam against the Zoroastrians In Iran
- Islam against the athiests in formerly Christian Europe
- Rising Islamist movement in "secular" Turkey
- Rising Islamist movement "democratic" nuclear armed Pakistan
- Rising Islamist movement in "modern, moderate" Malaysia
- Rising Islamist movement in Algeria
- Islam against the Christians in Indonesia
- Islam against infidel schoolchildren in Beslan, Russia
- Islam against infidel Australian tourists in Hindu Bali
- Islamic religious apartheid in Saudi Arabia
- Islam against the train commuters in Spain
- Islam against tube riders in London
- Islam against the "infidel" U.S. Embassies in Kenya & Tanzania
- Islam against office workers in New York
- Islam against freedom of speech at the U.N.
- Islam against schoolgirls in Afghanistan
- Islam against Christian schoolgirls in Indonesia (ambushed and decapitated)
- Islam against homosexuals in Iran, Iraq and everywhere they exist
- Islam against women
- Islam against Polish & Korean engineers (beheaded)
- Islam against authors (Salman Rushdie & his death fatwa)
- Islam against movie producers (Theo van Gogh brutally slaughtered)
- Islam against parked cars in Paris
- Islam against everything we stand for

Not to mention the different muslim against muslim conflicts around the world. Wahhabis murder girls that flee a burning building with the "proper coverings". Sunnis fight Shia and they both kill Sufis. Madrassas are established with oil money to spread Wahhabiism, teaching innocents that anyone, not exactly like them, is the enemy. Madrassas that teach children to read. But they read only the Koran. No science. No arts. Nothing that does not pertain to religion.

They need to demonstrate that THEY should be worthy of an extended hand of peace. Why extend a hand if one draws back a nub.

9/11 Off to Battle

1:04 p.m.: Bush, speaking from Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana, says that all appropriate security measures are being taken, including putting the U.S. military on high alert worldwide. He asks for prayers for those killed or wounded in the attacks and says, "Make no mistake, the United States will hunt down and punish those responsible for these cowardly acts."


It wasn't until I saw this at the National Memorial Service that I knew the mourning was over. This is THE Battle Hymn of the Republic and it was being sung at a official, national event.

The world did not yet know it, but we're were going to war.

Let's Roll

God Bless the Heroes of Flight 93. You saved untold lives.

Never Forget

This is what I was watching on 9/11 at 9:03a.m. while on active duty. Within 10 minutes, our Marines had opened the armory, secured the Reserve Center, and called for further orders.

Never Forget. No matter who is in office.

WE ARE AT WAR WITH THE PEOPLE AND PHILOSOPHY THAT DID THIS.

9/11 Action

we should honor and remember Rick Rescorla.

Who was Rick Rescorla?




Rick Rescorla was a war veteran and hero.
Lieutenant Rescorla was the sole remaining platoon leader in Bravo Company the
Battle of Ia Drang, made familiar to the USA by the movie We were Soldiers

He refused to wait for the government to save him.
He was the savior of an estimated 2700 people.
He organized and guided them out of the WTC Tower 2.

And then he went back for more.

"Men of Cornwall stop your dreaming
Can't you see their spear points gleaming?
See their warriors' pennants streaming
To this battlefield.
Men of Cornwall stand ye steady
It cannot be ever said ye
for the battle were not ready.
STAND AND NEVER YIELD!"
- "Men of Harlech"
Sung by Rick Rescorla in the Ia Drang Valley 1965 and in the stairway of WTC Tower 2 on September 11, 2001

If you would like to learn more about Rescorla’s life — a life that was a training ground for his heroic death — please visit The Mudville Gazette and Blackfive.

Sign the petition to award this hero the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

The Ambassador on the Front Lines

H/T Blackfive

We often, and justly, celebrate the US military and its members. We occasionally (and justly) express astonishment at the US State Department. Yet it is very much worth remembering that some of their members have led remarkable careers of service and contributed much to the American nation.
Among the greatest of these is Ambassador Ryan Crocker, who was General Petraeus' comerade in leading the strategy that saved Iraq from the fire. That was not the only thing of interest he has done, though, from hitch-hiking across Afghanistan, to being present at the Beruit bombing, to being our man in Kabul following the invasion and re-opening the US Embassy. His wife sets a standard for State Department wives as proud as that of a military wife, having remained by his side in theater even after their home was rocketed.
All of this, and more, is recounted in his retrospective on the years since 9/11. It's worth reading through. Some of it you may agree with, some not, but he has more than earned the right to be heard.

The Ambassador on the Front Lines

The 8 a.m. US Airways shuttle from Washington to New York City took off pretty much on time. The mid-September sky was clear, the air still, and most of the flight was perfectly uneventful. My State Department colleague David Pearce and I read the papers and looked over our notes as the plane began its descent toward LaGuardia.
"Look!" somebody said, and a rumble of alarmed voices spread through the cabin. One of the towers of the World Trade Center was on fire, and smoke churned over the upper stories like a thunderhead over lower Manhattan. We craned our necks to see through one window, then another as our plane banked and made its approach to the runway. Then, just as we landed, we saw in the distant skyline the second tower erupt in flames. Cell phones rang out, and random, frightened voices tried to make sense of what was happening.
For a diplomat, I have seen a lot of violence in my career. I survived the 1983 U.S. Embassy bombing in Beirut that was, until that day in September 2001, among the most infamous attacks on Americans in the history of terrorism. David is as experienced in the Middle East as anyone we have at State. But you didn't need our expertise to know, when that plane hit the second tower, that this was the work of terrorists.

President Bush fulfilled his pledge to U.S.

via Twitter

H/T to Jeff Emanuel.

Regardless of your opinions on whether we should have gone into Iraq or not, one thing is for certain:
We have not been attacked on our soil in the past 7 1/2 years.
Thank You President Bush for keeping us safe.
Thank You Troops for keeping us safe.

Earl Harrison

Guest Columnist

Sunday, January 11, 2009

The main burr under everyone’s saddle is the Iraq War.

In this respect, I challenge you to read the book “Dereliction of Duty” by Lt. Col. Robert “Buzz” Patterson. In this book, the basic planning of 9/11 was fermented in the Clinton administration.

When the 9/11 calamities struck our nation, President Bush pledged to the American people that he would do everything possible through the powers of his office to prevent another occurrence of such calamity from striking our nation again. He also pledged to hunt down the terrorists responsible for 9/11 and destroy them. President Bush had to challenge Congress to give him the “power of office” to check phone calls and other means to detect and apprehend anyone with tendencies toward terrorism.

He had to bang heads of the FBI and CIA to work together and apprehend undesirable people in our effort to prevent terrorist acts.

The world governments knew that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). His army used them on a segment of his nation. Hussein gassed thousands of people. It was common knowledge by many nations that Hussein was in cohorts with the terrorists. He paid homage to the families of the suicide bombers that were killing the Israeli people. He supported training camps for terrorists located in Iraq. Although it was determined that Hussein did not direct the 9/11 terrorist acts.

The United Nations gave a number of directives to Hussein; that he acknowledge having WMDs and dispose of them. Obviously, Hussein ignored all the referendums. The final referendum warned Hussein to comply with the directives or suffer the
consequences. At this point, President Bush implied that the consequences would be an invasion of Iraq to destroy the WMDs and the terrorists. President Bush concluded that it would be better to fight the terrorists on their streets than have to fight them on our streets. Hence, the invasion of Iraq. In addition, he wanted to make sure that the terrorists would not acquire any WMDs and use them in an attack on our nation.

President Bush sought approval and assistance from the United Nations, but they refused, and because of the danger from WMDs to the world, President Bush pledged that we would do it alone. In spite of the protesters, he stayed the course of his commitment.

On the invasion of Iraq, the military determined that Hussein had removed the WMDs from Iraq, but the military found large caches of military equipment designed for gas warfare. This was proof enough of his possession of WMDs.

The Iraq conflict has been prolonged by the invasion of terrorist elements from the neighboring countries. President Bush has permitted the military to conduct the operations. In contrast, civilian Washington micromanaged the Vietnam operation, which proved much more disastrous than Iraq.

I thank President Bush for trying to fulfill his pledge to the United States of America.

Have you forgotten?

First, God Bless the victims of 9/11 and their families.
Second, God Bless the police and firefighters and everyone else that ran INTO the buildings....
Third, God Bless everyone that assisted, in any way during or after the ordeal.
Fourth, God Bless America.

September 11, 2001 started out like any other day. I was on active duty with the Navy at the Richmond Navy and Marine Corp Reserve Center. I was on ADSW, aka Active Duty Special Work, being the Honor Guard at Veterans' funerals. I was on my way to find out what was scheduled for the day.

I remember the time exactly. It was 0854 hours. I was passing the conference room, noticing at first, only that the room was filled with the "gunnies" from the Marine Corps Reserve section from across the hall. Then I saw what they were watching...one of the World Trade Center towers was on fire.

One Gunny told me that a terrible accident had happened, but that was all that he knew. And so we watched....

And six minutes later, we were at war. We now knew that the crash had been no accident. The Marines, even before the debris had hit the ground in NYC, began securing the building and opening the armory. And then they called their superiors.
Over the next few weeks, they called in Reservists, in case they were needed. The gates were closed and armed guards posted.
One of my most cherished possessions is the Letter of Appreciation in a RED award folder that I have among my blue Navy award folders, which I received for volunteering to stand a guard post during the day so that the Marines could do their duties activating Reservists.

About an hour later, we found out about the Pentagon. Our eyes had finally been opened. Terrorism had ceased being a crime. Now we knew that, truly, we were at war.

Where were you when the Towers were hit?

9/11 - Remembering

I have no soaring words for 9/11. No eloquence. 9/11 was just another normal day. With normal Americans going about their business. The President declared that today should be Day of Remembrance.

We should remember. All of us. And teach your children about it, so that they remember.

For me, I remember what my thoughts were after the shock and worry about the victims:
Some people need to die for this.

And they still do......

American Alienation

WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES AND HARSH LANGUAGE AND WILL OFFEND LIBERAL APOLOGISTS

KafirAlalazoo
"My name is a pseudonym derived from the Arabic word 'kafir', which means 'infidel', and the word 'alalazoo', which is an ancient Greek military term, meaning 'to raise a war cry'.
With my videos, I hope to do exactly that. If you are educated along the way, so much the better."

An Open Mind (Redux)




American Alienation

Poland honors our dead and theirs...

h/t Little Green Footballs

Poland honors its dead and ours. If only we could show such taste in our memorials of 9/11. They do this for 2 of their fellow Poles and our firemen. While we have that travesty on Capitol Hill. Our Congress should be ashamed. Thank you, Poland.

I don't know if you can reach anyone at this link but if you want to say thanks, try this: Embassy of Poland, D.C.
E-mail:
polconsul.dc@verizon.net or polemb.info@earthlink.net (for general enquiries)

NEVER AGAIN

NEVER AGAIN
GOD BLESS THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA