9/11/2013

[Zarn Ishtare]

In the interest of brevity:

Today is the anniversary of the most dreadful act on our shores in a generation. On that day and since, many men and women have payed the ultimate price for freedom. In honor of them, and in honor of those who still serve, I ask that all of you take a brief moment to pray, and remember.

[Jingo Jaden]

A prayer, cheers, and salute from Norway.

[ClaecElric4God]

Ah, I was wondering if someone was going to make this thread. You beat me to it.

Happy(?) 9/11 Remembrance Day, everyone. Don't forget this day, or the effect it had on America.

Also, not to be nit-picky, but 9/11 isn't really a military day. Although we should take time to honor and pray for our vets and active soldiers, we have lots of holidays for that. 9/11 is more specifically for the remembrance of the civilians/firefighters/etc who lost their lives at Ground Zero and in the plane crashes.

[ADXC]

I hope everyone has a somber/pensive 9/11 and that all will take the time to think about and pray for the families of those who are still dealing with the ripple effects that came from that tragic event.

[PandaPop]

12 years how crazy, I cant believe it has been that long it still feels so vivid. I saw a man today walking across the freeway overpass in my town, he was all decked out in army print and waving an American flag, I thought that was pretty cool
Also don't forget about the brave men that were killed in the attack in Benghazi just one year ago.

[Nate]

Man Halfway Down Giant Water Slide Remembers Today 9/11

[PandaPop]

Man Looking Up At Tall Building Thinking About, You Know
Highly inappropriate, highly inappropriate....lol

[Wolfsong]

God have mercy on their souls, and grant this never fades from our memories. We need to remember, and pray for the souls of the lost.
Did anyone else see that face in the smoke of the crash? Mom showed me some of the pictures, and I heard some of the tales...I had nightmares for so long. I'll never forget that one man's words, of going through darkness deep as hell itself.
God have mercy on us all...

[Ally-Ann]

Man, I remember watching the planes crash into the towers on the news when I was little... I can't believe it's already been 12 years.

[PandaPop]

Wanted to share this, I think its really special
It is a 9/11 memorial in Israel

[Zarn Ishtare]

Nate, your comment is disgusting and morally offensive. There is nothing christian in it; it is mean spirited filth, a cruel jape at the expense of the dead.

Reported.

[Furen]

I remember hearing about it while I was in a grade 1 class. It's been that many years... I finished college now...

It was pretty big for us here in Canada too, so I hope everyone handled the day alright, it was especially hard on my aunt, her brother died last year on 9/11, so it's incredibly difficult for her on that day.

[PandaPop]

Man Looking Up At Tall Building Thinking About, You Know
Highly inappropriate, highly inappropriate....lol

I would like to formally apologize for this post, as it was extremely disrespectful. I will refrain from ever posting such things again, but I would like to explain my viewpoint if you guys don't mind
The only reason I actually found those Onion articles funny (although inappropriate as I mentioned) was because I literally actually do that on 9/11, I am that person looking up at a building and thinking about 9/11, the day means that much to me, I seriously cry every 9/11 anniversary while watching the news, and im not just saying this to try and justify myself, this is the truth! 9/11 was a turning point in the world a new vicious enemy was discovered. That day America and the world saw true evil, and we have been fighting it ever since. Also don't think I don't know the pain of 9/11, my brother joined the Military because of it and he was in Iraq in some of the darkest times that took place over there. He held friends in his arms as they died, his life was saved when a piece of shrap metal hit his camera instead of his heart, and young boy in Iraq was paid to try and kill him, among so many other situations. I prayed all the time for him to get home safe and PRAISE THE LORD he did!! but the pain that he feels from what he went through over there is still very visible and it hurts me sooooo much to see him hurting. I wish I could take back 9/11 and this enemy if only so my brother wouldn't have to go through the pain he does. And I feel this same way for all the victims of 9/11 and all the families that have lost loved ones or have to watch their loved ones in pain.
That being said, I am by no means an avid Onion reader (just the occasional fb post someone makes) I do not know the premise on which they wright, and I thought these articles were not made to be offensive but just to laugh amidst the pain we all feel so its not so hard to bear. Clearly I was wrong in how I took them, I guess I just couldn't imagine someone actually creating something such as that as a real jab at the deaths, and I now understand how wrong it was of me to contribute to such a thing and I don't even think they are funny anymore knowing all of this.
Again sorry, I feel so embarrassed now.
I hope you guys can forgive me

[Jingo Jaden]

Man Looking Up At Tall Building Thinking About, You Know
Highly inappropriate, highly inappropriate....lol

I would like to formally apologize for this post, as it was extremely disrespectful. I will refrain from ever posting such things again, but I would like to explain my viewpoint if you guys don't mind
The only reason I actually found those Onion articles funny (although inappropriate as I mentioned) was because I literally actually do that on 9/11, I am that person looking up at a building and thinking about 9/11, the day means that much to me, I seriously cry every 9/11 anniversary while watching the news, and im not just saying this to try and justify myself, this is the truth! 9/11 was a turning point in the world a new vicious enemy was discovered. That day America and the world saw true evil, and we have been fighting it ever since. Also don't think I don't know the pain of 9/11, my brother joined the Military because of it and he was in Iraq in some of the darkest times that took place over there. He held friends in his arms as they died, his life was saved when a piece of shrap metal hit his camera instead of his heart, and young boy in Iraq was paid to try and kill him, among so many other situations. I prayed all the time for him to get home safe and PRAISE THE LORD he did!! but the pain that he feels from what he went through over there is still very visible and it hurts me sooooo much to see him hurting. I wish I could take back 9/11 and this enemy if only so my brother wouldn't have to go through the pain he does. And I feel this same way for all the victims of 9/11 and all the families that have lost loved ones or have to watch their loved ones in pain.
That being said, I am by no means an avid Onion reader (just the occasional fb post someone makes) I do not know the premise on which they wright, and I thought these articles were not made to be offensive but just to laugh amidst the pain we all feel so its not so hard to bear. Clearly I was wrong in how I took them, I guess I just couldn't imagine someone actually creating something such as that as a real jab at the deaths, and I now understand how wrong it was of me to contribute to such a thing and I don't even think they are funny anymore knowing all of this.
Again sorry, I feel so embarrassed now.
I hope you guys can forgive me

Give yourself some pause in the fact that your intents were not really to intentionally make light of the situation as much as you wanted to not be somber in a thread that warranted such mood. You're alright. Easier mistake than most realize to make.

[SierraLea]

One of the priests who had his first year of ministry at our church had friends who died in the incident. He gave a homily on it. I was possibly one of the most moving things I have every had the privilege to hear.

[PandaPop]

Give yourself some pause in the fact that your intents were not really to intentionally make light of the situation as much as you wanted to not be somber in a thread that warranted such mood. You're alright. Easier mistake than most realize to make.

Thank You for this
I feel real dumb for what I did, especially because it was not my intent. I actually ended up offending myself when I went back and read it, knowing more. Thank you for understanding.

[Nate]

I thought these articles were not made to be offensive but just to laugh amidst the pain we all feel so its not so hard to bear.

Don't worry, you thought correctly. The Onion's piece isn't offensive, it's a satirical point that for many people, 9/11 (though it happened in our lifetimes) is a distant memory for those who weren't personally affected by the attacks. It's a commentary that for most people, we are living our normal lives.

Some people don't have that luxury. Some people are still struggling with the pain of losing a very closed loved one, either through the attacks themselves or its aftermath. For some people, their lives were irrevocably changed on that day, and still haven't been able to recover.

For the rest of us, what can we do? A man is enjoying a day at a water park, having fun on a giant water slide. Halfway down, he suddenly realizes it's 9/11. The picture with the article has a somber expression photoshopped onto the man's face. The joke is in that he is enjoying himself, but feels he no longer can now that he realizes what day it is.

But ultimately, don't we do this all the time with other anniversaries too? How many people, for example, felt any sorrow or pain on Pearl Harbor Day? Wasn't it a normal day for most of us? Sure, we may say "Remember today is Pearl Harbor Day," but hardly any of us know anyone personally affected by that. We may take a few seconds to remember "Oh yeah, this happened," but ultimately we don't dwell on it.

Is this wrong? I don't think it is. Humans have a limited capacity for empathy in the sense that unless it personally affects us, we really can't bring ourselves to care much. Millions of Chinese soldiers died in the Three Kingdoms era of China for example...they were all human beings, with families and loved ones, and every human life is sacred...but have we ever wept for them? Have we stopped to think about their deaths, felt any pain over them? No, of course not. That would be fairly silly, they lived almost two thousand years before any of us did and we can't possibly have known any of them outside of statistics, and a few of the more famous ones (who we don't even know what they looked like).

Now, that said, I think it's also important to note that this does not mean that we cannot express sympathy for those who have suffered personally by an event. While we may not be able to understand or care particularly deeply, we can care enough to comfort those who were affected. We should show love to others, hold them, let them weep on our shoulder, do something nice for them, listen to them, help them, be a true friend.

But there's no need to hold yourself back, man on giant waterslide. The victims of the 9/11 attacks would want you to have fun. Laugh, smile, and enjoy the fun. For they no longer can.

[goldenspines]

@ Nate: The Onion, being a fake news source makes its popularity by parodies and ridiculing actual news stories to make light of current events. While fun for most, it's meant to be offensive and edgy; that's the point.

There is one thing I would like you to consider as you post in the future about things like this, though. You seem to come from the mindset of "Well, it didn't affect me, so I shouldn't have to care about it! I mean, it's terrible for the people who suffered, but we should have fun in their stead." This is an immature and disrespectful way to treat others who have been affected by this tragedy.
While we shouldn't be (and are not) asking people to go about these days in somber and sad disposition (because the Lord forbid you have ANY fun on an anniversary where people died. XP), it's an occasion that needs respect for the people who died and those who are still fighting and suffering today. Regardless if you were affected or not, others were. No one is asked to care. In fact, they can ignore it all they like if they want, but it's not a joking matter.
But if you can't be serious and respectful about something like this, I ask that you abstain from posting in threads about it.

Please PM me if you have any questions about this.