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A
TRIBUTE TO THE AMERICAN SPIRIT
September
11, 2001 will live in the hearts and minds of all Americans
for all time.
In fact, it is a day that will live in the hearts and
minds of people all over the world for generations to come.
We are in pain and all America is suffering over this
horrific, mindless act.
But our collective pain, confusion and disbelief pales in
comparison to the pain, confusion and disbelief of the family
and friends of the victims of this criminal act, this act of war
that so unjustly cut their lives short.
Like
all of you, I was horrified by the events unfolding in New York,
Washington and Pennsylvania.
Horrified and sickened by what I saw, but unable to turn
off the TV for what I might miss.
I, like the rest of America, wanted to see hundreds of
people rescued. We
were all very disappointed.
We have seen the video and heard the soundtracks of death
and destruction hundreds, if not thousands, of times since that
fateful day. We
saw, and will continue to see for all time, these vivid images
that capture the ultimate of man’s inhumanity to man. We saw evil unleashed on our country like never before.
We saw innocent people slaughtered for no other reason
than the prosecution of a pitiful political agenda.
America, the world and, more simply, freedom itself was
attacked, but to no avail.
We will persevere, rise up and be strong because the
ideals of righteousness cannot be trampled so easily.
Americans are at their best when faced with adversarial
circumstances. What
makes America great is the common commitment of its citizens to
the democratic principles of freedom, a commitment shared by
most civilized countries in the world.
We
saw people from over 60 different countries, people who were our
friends, family and colleagues, people we loved, of all races,
religions and ethnic backgrounds, who were made victims by these
senseless, criminal acts of terrorism.
The criminal acts have killed almost 6,000 people and
injured thousands more, and for what?
What a tragic waste of human potential.
Yet,
in the midst of this horrific event, we saw the absolute best of
humanity. We saw
almost 350 policemen, firemen and EMT workers perish as they
rushed in to render aid without regard for their own personal
safety. We watched
our country rally behind the rescuers, our President, the
Congress and all of our elected officials.
America couldn’t be prouder of our brothers and sisters
in New York and Washington, or of the heroic individuals on
United Flight 93 that crashed in Pennsylvania.
Our churches were filled; flags were unfurled; blood
donated; financial donations made; people volunteered, sang and
prayed together. All
of this was done not out of terror but out of resolve.
Resolve to stand together, to make a difference and to
demonstrate that good will prevail over evil.
We
are changed by the events of September 11.
We will move forward; we will recover; and we will
rebuild. We are a determined bunch.
Our country is made stronger by its diversity.
We will not tolerate those people who want to impose a
single view of the world upon us.
We are Americans. We
come from everywhere; we look the same and we look differently.
Some of us speak with accents; some of us do not.
Some of us are first-generation Americans and some of us
are related to the founding fathers and mothers of this country. We worship in temples, mosques, churches and synagogues.
Some of us don’t worship at all.
But, we are a free people, free to choose how or if we
worship. We are
freedom-loving people who, when pushed to the edge, will rise up
and defend the principles of democracy against those nations or
individuals that seek to destroy our way of life.
With a discipline and commitment few have seen, we will
overcome the hate thrust upon us.
I
am proud to be an American for so many reasons. Shame on me that it has taken such a horrific act for me to
stop and reflect on all of the pleasures of life bestowed on me
because I am an American. America
as a nation and its people as individuals have achieved
greatness over the centuries because of our unyielding
commitment to our democratic principles. We believe in equality under the law, no matter where you
come from. Oh, we
make mistakes – yes, too many to count – and we will make
many more over the coming centuries.
That’s one of the reasons we are great!
We acknowledge our mistakes.
However, at the end of the day, when you balance the
ledger, our contributions outweigh our mistakes tenfold.
We are a nation of individuals united by our love of
peace and freedom. But,
make no mistake, we will defend these ideals fiercely and with
steely resolve, even to the death as generations before us have
done.
The
civilized world is at risk without the strength of our country.
America will shine brightly for the world, like a beam
from a lighthouse that draws ships safely to harbor.
The will of our citizens, the strength of conviction and
the resolve of our leaders will see us through this calamity.
We will rebuild our buildings, lift up our wounded, bury
our dead and achieve greatness like never before.
Why? Because
we are Americans, and we are free!
- Paul
Thomas
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