Posted on 09/11/2005 6:20:10 AM PDT by StatenIsland
The site itself was cleared of its millions of tons of rubble in an astonishing eight months. This was a triumph of planning, muscle and will. But even before it was cleared, the site was the focus of various forces: real estate and political interests, the wishes of the families of the almost 3,000 dead, the desires of New Yorkers in the immediate neighborhood and beyond. They were not all cynical. Many were idealistic. For some it was sacred ground, never to be touched. Others resisted turning the site into a necropolis, a place inhabited by ghosts. They wanted it brimming with life, filled with children's laughter, while providing a place of repose for the old. Most of the opposing viewpoints were valid. But the result has been paralysis.
And there are other factors. One of them was George W. Bush. He was warned by memo on Aug. 6, 2001, while on his first vacation in Crawford, Tex., that followers of Osama Bin Laden were preparing "hijackings and other types of attacks, including recent surveillance of federal buildings in New York." We don't know if he read the memo. But he did not instantly order increased security at the nation's airports, and in the following month, those 19 hijackers boarded four airliners armed only with box cutters, and came to kill. Of the 19 Islamic fanatics, 15 were Saudis. Bush then went on to invade Iraq, and continues to insist on a linkage not supported by hard facts. It was no surprise that in 2004 74.3% of New Yorkers voted for John Kerry.
The war in Iraq robbed us in New York of the emotional focus that followed Sept. 11. Bush kept invoking Sept. 11 to justify his war - a war of choice, not necessity....
Uhh. Minor detail.
On September 11, those box cutters were perfectly legal to carry onto the plane. Had increased security been ordered by GWB, and they had found the box cutters, they would have been handed back to the hijackers with a smile.
Given the laws at the time, there was no legal way to prevent them getting on those planes with knives. The hijackers had broken no laws until they started cutting throats.
The problem was not the enforcement of the laws, it was that the laws themselves were inadequate.
He's a jackass. Clintoon the idiot did nothing except return a Cuban boy to prison and bomb an aspirin factory.
9-11 was Bush's fault because he was on vacation, I take it ?
All Presidents past and present all senators, congress past and present should share in the shame, guilt not just one because it happened on His watch.
He was no more guilty than all the prior administrations that knew a lot and didn't plan accordingly. There is one game Washington plays best, Blame Game. While they are playing the game ordinary citizens suffer.
The woulda, coulda, shoulda's are over folks, the blame game is over folks, tell us NOW what you will do in the future to PREVENT this from happening again? And when NOT IF it happens again or a natural disaster happens again what plans do you have in place to be able to protect citizens?
If you know with certainty a disaster like the N.O. flood 0f 2005 will happen what plans do you NOW have in place for shelters of where to place your poor?
Not IF but when another 9/11 happens what plans do you have in place to cover the financial aftermath that touches all lives? Who's minding the store?
Sept 11 tragedy touched all of us in many ways for the rest of our lives. God bless the victims souls.
More liberal drivel when are these people going to give up? Everytime they write a column or open their mouth on tv or radio they look even more pathetic.. Instead of criticizing Bush on this 4th anniversary why not praise the people on flight 93 or the 300+ fire men that ran into the building instead of away from the building. I am getting perty fed up with this crap from the liberal rabid dogs..
A lot of people are. 'swhy their circulation is in the dumper and they're forced to lie about the number of papers they sell (Mpls Star Tribune, Chicago Tribune, others).
I know that is whats awsome the Docu channels are doing a good job, but the printed media is up to there elbows in handwringing and bull stuff!
Absolutely. If he hadn't been goofing off in Crawford, he could have been at the gate at Logan airport and prevented these guys from boarding the plane.
I don't know what legal reason he could have given for doing so, as the hijackers broke no laws until well after the plane took off. Undoubtedly loud outcries of racism and racial profiling would have erupted.
Well, they had broken no laws anyone knew about at the time. There are laws against conspiracy and so forth.
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