'America must remain strong'

My husband and I watched television all day long, simply stunned by the events unfolding before us. And then the Pentagon was hit and the heroes on Flight 93 overpowered their Muslim captors and flew the plane into the ground. We knew immediately this was no ordinary accident. He was a retired Air Force Major and a PanAm 747 captain with over 22,000 jet hours of flight time. 

My husband said, "We are at war and it's nothing like anything that's happened before."

My husband said, "We are at war and it's nothing like anything that's happened before."

In the days that followed as the pieces began to fit together and we discovered who did this to us, an amazing spirit of unity swept our great country. Yes, there was anger, even rage, but underneath a steely determination that this wouldn't happen again. And it hasn't. 

My brother works at the main post office in a large Midwestern city. He was on vacation 10 years ago and returned to work a few days after the attacks. Over 2,000 people work in that building each of three shifts a day. His supervisor told him that on 9/11 all television stations were showing the carnage but in the break rooms Somali temporary workers were cheering every time they saw the planes hit the towers.

The supervisor knew if the American workers were aware of this, chaos was a foregone conclusion. He told them to pack their things and get out. They protested that had a “right” to their jobs and didn’t want to leave. “All right,” said the super. “I’ll just tell the rest of the employees and they’ll sort it all out.” They were gone in 10 minutes.

Sometimes the spirit of political correctness has impeded our progress toward safety in this new world. I haven't read of or heard about any gray haired old ladies committing atrocities in the name of religion, but I have to take my shoes off at the airport just the same.

Profiling, which would have put a stop to the insanity much sooner, was strictly denied because we might offend someone. Since the same "someones" have found a myriad of ways to inflict terror around the world, it seems agonizingly stupid to ignore the obvious.

Profiling, which would have put a stop to the insanity much sooner, was strictly denied because we might offend someone. Since the same "someones" have found a myriad of ways to inflict terror around the world, it seems agonizingly stupid to ignore the obvious.

Kindness and compassion come easily to most Americans; we’re often the first to lend a hand during worldwide disasters. Our enemies should not mistake these attributes for weakness or lack of resolve. Some of our elected officials are anxious to reduce spending on defense during these critical times. Clearer minds must prevail; America must remain strong and able to defend our way of life and our precious freedoms.

Like the heroes of 9/11/01 who rushed to the sites of destruction, each of us will find within ourselves the courage and determination to honor those who sacrificed everything so we can continue to say, “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

Like the heroes of 9/11/01 who rushed to the sites of destruction, each of us will find within ourselves the courage and determination to honor those who sacrificed everything so we can continue to say, “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."