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Anniversary of September 11th
This Sunday marks the 4 year anniversary of 9/11, and I was just wondering what (if anything) people will be doing that day. I'd like to do something, but just not sure what! There is going to be a show on the Discovery channel on Sunday night at 8pm (CST) about the flight that carried the passengers who took it over and fought back with the terrorists, which in turn, saved a lot of lives. I am definitely going to watch that. Anyone have anything planned?
Kim
Kim
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9/11/05: we will be spending it in the hospital with him.
I'm sorry to hear about your son in the hospital harlan, I hope everything is ok!
I remember when I found out about 9/11 I was a junior in high school. I was in my English class talking about the salem witch trials. The announcement came on for the teachers to turn on the television. The whole class just sat in silence. No talking...it was weird, especially for a group of high schoolers.
Simon, if I didn't have a two year old daughter, I would love to sit in meditation for most of the day!
Well, I remember that I was at work when we were told what was happening---the entire automotive plant went dead-silent! Everyone went into the break room to watch. No one was doing anything but watching the big screen TV in the break room as the tragedy unfolded. :sadc: :hair: :-/ It was riveting and scary, but I just could not stop watching! :banghead: I was not the only one, either. Afterwards, I immediately called my husband to check on him and the children. I don't know why I did---I just felt I needed to check on my family even though we were fine here in Indiana. Afterwards, the management team figured that people were not in the mood to work so we were all sent home if we wanted to go home.
Adiana :sadc:
As for the aniversary, Me and my cousin are going on a hike to one of our sacred places, for a bit of meditation.
Yesterday before my cousin and I took off on our hike we went to a tabacco store to get alittle tabacco for an offering to the spirits. When we got there we found out that they only sell it in 1/2 pound or full pound bags. Well we didn't need that much. And it would be a waste to have purchased it. So My cousin asked the store clerk if there were any smaller packages and told him why we needed it.
It turned out that the store clerk was really the owner. He had his own special tabacco blend in the back and gave us just what we needed for the blessing. He also told us that when we needed more just to let him know.
So we took the tabacco to the two trees and made the offering along with a blessing for the man who had shown us compassion. All in All it was a wonderful day.
I went to an amazing Yoga class last night. It was a "Lunar Flow" class in the evening, and the instructor had us dedicate our class to all of the families and victims of 9/11 and we sent them love throughout the entire 90 minute class and we meditated at the beginning and at the end of class. It was wonderful.
For me 9/11, is a horrible, horrible incident.
I also knew when it happened that the US was "damned if you do, damned if you don't" in any action it took.
I guess the best action, globally, would have been for the US to do nothing. I believe what we did was not the right thing (going into a country thta may or may not have had anything to do with it and only having made-up-evidence and taking control and terrorize it's people) but - even if we did try to bring the actual people that dreamed up this atrocity to justice - we would face the ridicule of the rest of the world for one reason or another.
I believe it also brought the faith of Islam into light with principles and a mind-set that have nothing to do with Islam. While I do know that Islamic teachings do teach of "vengence" it is not the overlying teachings of Allah or it's prophets.
Horrible, horrible events. I tend to only think of the survivors and try to forget the ones that did this. In my opinion - they aren't worth even thinking about. It's easier to try to give them no sense of importance or worth rather than thinking ill of them or wishing they were dead.
-bf
THe victims and their families are the reason my cousin and I did the blessing along with the victims and families of Katrina.
I do not care about those who master-minded the attack. For I believe that they will eventuallly reap what they sowed so to speak.
-bf
I ignore the people that did this - since I don't know how to deal with them in a Buddhist fashion - and concentrate on the people that lived through this.
-bf
And hard as it may be to believe, there are those who have a genuine love for these people - their mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers - that's not to say that they know about, or agree with what they've done (though chances are....) but they're family members with love in their hearts.
And strip everything away, and leave just the human being, whatever their religion, motivation, intention and Life's desires - whether you agree with them or not - they have one head, two eyes one nose, a mouth, etc. etc. etc... just like you...
hate the sin, not he sinner.
hate the deed, not the doer...
hate the trouble, not the trouble-maker....
But, doesn't there come a time when we need to put away these thoughts of compassion and, if nothing else, just ignore the existance of people like this?
I feel the same way about serial killers, rapists, child abusers, people that do weird, freaky stuff to people they've kidnapped, etc. Because these aren't just things they've done in an off-handed manner. These acts almost become intrinsic to them.
I do not know how to deal with people like this - and it's something that I probably have to learn for my own well-being. Because, even if you forgive these people - there is still all the damage to deal with from their actions.
Very tough for me. But, on the flip side - I don't deal with people like this (at least, not that I know of) on a daily basis - so I tend to ignore people that do these sorts of actions.
-bf
For the first, these people have committed a crime, and in the eyes of society and law, deserve to be - and should be brought to justice and punished. THis goes from the petty burglar right up to the murderous paedophile.... And they should be made to understand their actions are unacceptable and wrong.
For the second, Universal Compassion and Unconditional Love are non-selective. if they were, we'd have passages like -
"suffer the little children to come unto me... no, not you Cedric, you're a little shit...!"
These two qualities are non-judgemental, impartial and complete. And nobody I know - including - ABOVE ALL - me - has got the hang of them yet. Except Gandhi and HH The Dalai Lama..... But I promise you, I aspire to great things....
If you know hate, then you must know LOve. And in order to maintain the balance, to maintain Mankind and to keep sane, surely - SURELY - we have to work on ourselves to eliminate the first and to cultivate the second.....
You know what is scary???
Since none of us truly knows what is right or what is going to happen...
What if Osama is right?
That's spooky.
But still, even if he is right - I'd rather face eternity (or whatever happens to me) doing what I feel is "right" right now.
-bf
I was a student at UNF at the time. I had rolled out of dorm bed that morning to check my email before going to class. My brother-in-law had sent me something about a plane crash, but I just sort of skimmed it. Half asleep I walked to class. On the way, I walked by the cafeteria and saw the tv's all tuned to the new with the plane crashes. Once I realized there was more than one, I knew something was definitely wrong, but I didn't know how bad. I went to class and everything seemed to still be going as usual. Then half-way through the class someone came in to say that the university was cancelling classes. That seemed drastic for a couple plane crashes in a whole other part of the country. We decided we just wanted to continue class, but someone came in again and said that we had to leave, they were closing the building - the first time they had done so since the semester started. That's when I really knew something was up. They also said that we should stay off the phones unless we needed to call our loved ones concerning the crashes. I went back to my dorm and spent the rest of the day glued to the tv, watching the death toll rise.
This is true. Osama makes good and valid points.
On the other hand - While we in the West may be considered materialistic or whatever it is people want to label it - I believe it's the best we have.
Many countries (not all) are very apt and pointing out the ills of Western thinking while their archaic myths, superstitions, and fairy tales keep their populace down trodden and poor.
Why is it that entire continents, like Africa, drown in poverty and human anguish? Many times it's because of the greed of their own people that create this thinking and mindset. Because if you liberate people - you jeopardize you own greed/wants/desires.
Why is AIDS so rampant through Africa? Why does the African populace perpetuate myths that "the only way a man with AIDS can get rid of it is by having sex with a virgin girl"? Is it the West that is perpetuating these thoughts in this continent?
So - I have to say that while Osama makes some valid points about the West - the Middle-East has their own set of problems. Which!, are their problems and will continue to be their problems whether or not there is a West or not.
They can preach "Allah says this" or "Allah says that" all they want. But for people like this - their very core is poisoned. They also continue to only follow the precepts that please their humanity while forcing men and (especially) women and children into less than human status.
The West may be bad - but at least Western ideologies are what so many people from other 3rd World or down-trodden countries keep flocking to for a raised status of the human condition. It's where people would rather have their children raised in some sense of freedom rather than slavery. Children that can grow up having a sense of hope.
I'm not saying it's perfect - far from it. But, I wouldn't wnat to live anywhere else.
-bf
and now it's very late here, so I'll just have to reserve my 'countless words of wisdom' for tomorrow - !!
So much to respond to..... look forward to it - !!
The anniversary has come and gone, and I watched Reality TV with footage of events of the 11th, (some of which were still so distressing, I was moved to tears) and interviews with people 'Then and Now'.
Amazing how, even though the events were still very fresh and painful for everyone, how attitudes to personal experiences varied. leaving aside the political agenda and general public/social/global effects of 9/11, these people all faced their demons in very different ways. And my heart went out to those who couldn't 'Let Go.' there were those who relied on their fazith to help them move on. Others who dealt with the whole thing very philosophically, but grateful they'd survived to tell the tale, thiose who put their experiences to 'good use' by being more altruistic and those who, still obviously in great pain, said that they'd never ever get over it. I felt most for them.
AMEN TO THAT!!! :bigclap:
In reading Osama's letter to the United States after he attacked us, I especially liked the part about how women in the US aretreated as "sexual objects". Hmmm...that's interesting...let's discuss how the women of his country are treated! And, most of them women that live here that are treated like sexual objects are the women who have chosen to live their life that way (ie...strippers, porn stars, women who dress in the skimpiest clothes, etc, etc...). As a woman, there really aren't too many other places I would rather live!
Sure Osama probably makes a few valid points, but that does not justify his actions for killing innocent people because of the country they live in. Heck, Hitler probably made a few valid points about things as well (welll...maybe not
Sometimes my girlfriend gets upset if I DON'T treat her like a sexual object every once in awhile. Not in bad way, cuz I'm absolutely bonkers over her
-bf
Whilst this may be true, YM, in many cases and I would agree that women have a better chance of equity and equality in our countries, there are some very worrying figures to consider:
* 16% of all women in the USA have been sexually abused by a relative before they turn 18.
* 4.5% of all women are abused by their fathers;
* This means that some 22,000,000 women in the USA alone have been molested by members of their own family. And, of these, 6,000,000 were abused by their fathers.
Gives some great examples on how skewed statistics can be. This book states, with convincing figures, that most children that are killed or injured are done so at the hands of a female family member. Not even by the stereotypical "malicious male" or even a stranger.
Even how numbers are processed regarding "abused children". It doesn't seem like it's as many as we think.
But then again, it's just another book of statistics
-bf
In regards to statistics when it comes to sexually abused children...I would think that the numbers are probably MORE than what is reported since many children never even tell anyone about being sexually abused.
When I think about it - I don't think I can argue either way.
A lot of statistics come from Child Protective Services - which can basically act like a Facist State organization - posting their findings whether based in fact or not. I think their reports and findings go like the old lawyer comedy question: "So... have you stopped beating your wife?" You're damned either way you answer.
But on the flip side - the Catholic Diocese in the town I'm living in is going through a huge lawsuit for all of the children that have been molested by priests for years here. A friend of a friend was contacted by the local newspaper regarding what happened to him.
In no uncertain terms he told that that he had buried that portion of his life and if the paper printed his name - they would have a lawsuit slapped on them so quickly that it would make their head spin.
So... we'll probably never know correct figures. But - that doesn't matter anyway. If one child is abused, one person molested or beaten - it's one too many.
-bf
Exactly. My daughter is going to know how to protect herself, for sure!
I cited the numbers because they are the ones on which I can lay my hands. YM's point about the under-reporting of abuse and, thus, the lack of robustness in the figures is central. Nor do I believe that the situation is better in the majority of Western countries, including the UK.
My reason for quoting them at all is that I was considering what I am finding a more and more dangerous trend in international and interpersonal intercourse. It is the argument for "relative evil" as justification for inaction. It is the attitude that says, "OK, we may not yet be perfect but at least I'm better than them!" It's bad enough to compare ourselve with others and freeze because we feel worse than they are, but because we are better?
In terms of crimes against women and children, which, it has been pointed out to me, are not classified as "hate" crimes, I believe that we must, always, be striving to do better. X or Y% in this county, country or continent may seem big or small but it will be 100% to the people involved.
Kim
When speaking of "West" or "Westerners" - I'm speaking of the democratic and socialist countries of the world. Any country where the people still have somewhat (although it's getting smaller and smaller) of a say-so...
-bf