A view from decades hence as brilliantly presented at Silent Running in There's going to be a war
"Doesn't change a thing Timmy - I remember it today as clear as if it were just yesterday. That fireman looking up as the first plane dove into the tower like a swimmer going into a swimming pool. The second plane banking..."Posted by Vanderleun at September 1, 2003 9:46 AM"I remember Granddad, you only told me, like, a zillion times. But you know, other things happened too, not just the start of the War."
"Yes, of course. Seattle was a terrible day for us all, and so was Brisbane. And the death toll from the Al-Qaeda Influenza was one of the worst pandemics in history, sure. But you see Timmy, by then, we had steeled ourselves."
"What, you didn't care as much, you'd become blase about civillian casualties?"
"Absolutely not! We NEVER grew callous, not even about their civillians, despite what your university history lecturers may have told you. But it was different from that first day."
"How so?"
"September 11th shocked us. We didn't expect it. It came literally out of a clear blue sky. I knew right there and then that the world I knew was gone, and it wasn't coming back. Ever."
"But Seattle..."
"I think we'd already accepted that we were in a war, and that there'd be casualties. When I saw that mushroom cloud Timmy, I have to tell you it wasn't like September 11th. There was a sort of grim fatalism when that happened. Like when you're in uniform, and the guy next to you catches a bullet. He's gone, sure, it's a goddamn tragedy, but you don't have time to think about it. You still have a job to do."
"That's a bit cold."
"No, not cold. Neccessary. After Seattle, some folks thought everything would change, that there'd be some sort of negotiation. Huh! With who? About what? The difference between Seattle and New York is that Seattle happened to us when we were all soldiers and knew it. New York happened when we were civillians. There's a difference."
Pointer via LGF
