9/11/2001: Patriot Day and UA Flight 93 (Updated and reposted from 9/7/2016)

UA Flight 93 Crash Site

The image above should be a stark reminder to all Americans of what it means to be a patriot.  This is the crater and the associated debris field, all that was left to sift through after a passenger jet hits the ground like a fragile giant lawn dart.  This was UA Flight 93, after passengers, had heard what had occurred, just minutes before, at the World Trade Center.  They refused to sit idly by and let their flight become another weapon of mass destruction.  There was a question of whether Flight 93 was shot down by our own fighter jets, or if the passengers succeeded in their efforts.    According to one military pilot, sent up that day to prevent more attacks, the fighters in her squadron were sent up unarmed since there had been no time to upload weapons.  Our brave fighter pilots were on "suicide missions" to take out any other non-responsive passenger jets with the only weapon at their disposal - their own jets. They were sent to kill their fellow Americans in order to save an untold number of other Americans.   Thank God they didn't have to.

 Al-Qaeda terrorists 4, American patriots 40; UA Flight 93 was an expensive win for our nation.

I wrote 9/11 As a Celebration of Life in 2013, several months after I began blogging "The Path."  I followed up in 2014 with September 11, 2001, and I wrote my first post in remembrance of Patriot Day last year, Patriot Day - 9/11.  While others may forget, daily, the sacrifices made by those who fight and die to secure our safety and freedoms in this country, I make a choice not to.  Does my remembrance make me better than others?  No.  Well, maybe it makes me better than those in the League of the Perpetually Offended who think it's okay to disrespect the very country giving them the freedom and right to be offended at every little thing, instead of utilizing the legal recourse at their disposal or voting to change it.  I suppose it is easier for some to constantly bitch and complain like whiny little spoiled babies.  But, I digress.

Who were the patriots on September 11, 2001?  Were they the 2,937 people who died in the two successful attacks at the World Trade Center buildings (Twin Towers) and the Pentagon?  Were they the 40 passengers of Flight 93 who willingly went to war onboard their airliner, and died preventing an attack on the U.S. Capitol or the White House?  Were they the first responders who kept going back into the buildings to save people until the structure collapsed killing many, and are still dying to this day due to medical issues arising from their selfless actions?  Or, perhaps they were the brave, selfless, fighter pilots who, by the grace of God, did not have to ram their fighters down the throats of a cowardly enemy who continues to use innocent civilians as shields and statements in the heresy of their misdirected faith, lorded over by cowardly imams who would no sooner put on a suicide vest than give up their lofty positions of leadership directing these weak-minded faithful with false interpretations of their holiest scripture.

They are heroes all; the victims were martyrs to remind us of those freedoms we take for granted until someone steps in and tries to take them from us; the first responders who daily put boot to ass knowing they may be walking into no-win situations where lives, including their own, are on the line; those brave military men and women who went unarmed into the Valley of Death for the preservation of what we hold dearest.  They sent the enemy a message for all of us, as did the brave men and women of United Airlines Flight 93, who took matters into their own hands to prevent an even worse destruction if their hijackers had succeeded with their plan.  

These are the heroes of our national pride.  These are the men and women who do not run their mouths concerning the multitude of perpetual imagined offenses, that minutia of our lives when you consider how much more there is to be concerned about.

If I were to pick one of these groups to hold out as an example of the American spirit, I would go with the passengers of Flight 93, and here is my reasoning:

Flight 93 were not volunteers, or first responders, who knew their career had risks which they may not survive.  Weren't they victims like all those other innocent civilians who died?  They might have been, except that they chose not to be.  They made a conscious decision that the good of the many outweighed the good of the few.  They chose courage.  The memorial at the crash site says it best:  

"The brave men and women who gave their lives to save so many others.  Their courage and love of their country will be a source of strength and comfort to our great nation."

When I see football quarterbacks not standing and saluting the flag during the national anthem before a game, it saddens me at their lack of respect for the flag, the country, and heroes, like the passengers of Flight 93.  People disrespecting our flag, and country, just to make a statement are Americans in name only.  They take advantage of the freedom and rights that others have fought and died for.  They are "closet cowards" too far from being American patriots.  If you want to see a patriot, look to the medal presentations at the Olympics and find the winner who cries as the flag is raised and the anthem is played.

Patriotism isn't a title. Patriotism is a state of mind.  Are you a patriot?  Well, ask yourself what you would you do if you had been on Flight 93? 

I cry when thinking of the last words heard from passenger Todd Beamer: 

"Are you ready? Okay. Let's roll."

“There is no greater love than this: that a person would lay down his life for the sake of his friends.”

-- John 15:13

 

Note for my readers:  For more information about the crash of Flight 93, I used the following sites in a bit of my research for this post:  Evidence: The Crash of Flight 93, Air Traffic Control Recording-United Airlines Flight 93, and Specialist's Factual Report of Investigation-Digital Flight Data Recorder.  I used many other online references too numerous to list, and mostly for my own interest and edification.  Please feel free to look up the information on these brave passengers, and don't forget to have tissues at the ready.

Editor's Note

(Re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card)

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch - it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either view any more right or wrong than the other. Opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form their own opinions, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider an alternate viewpoint.

I fervently hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions, and while engaging in peaceful and constructive discussion, in an arena of mutual respect, concerning those opinions offered. After twenty-three years of military intelligence, I believe that engaging each other in this manner, and in this arena, is a way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience... and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 22 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. Following his service career, he spent 17 years working with the premier and world-renowned Western Institutional Review Board, helping to protect the rights of human subjects involved in pharmaceutical research. He also served 8 years on the Board of Directors for the Angela J. Bowen Foundation.

Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As a weapon for his war on intolerance... he chose the pen. He wages his "battle" in the guise of the Congregation's official online blog, The Path, of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's personal, spiritual path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteered as the lead chaplain at a regional medical center.

Feel free to contact Pastor Tony at: tolerantpastor@gmail.com