By my very rough math, It's been 9,131 days since September 11,2001. I've written dozens of these blogs in the years since...and some of you will not like this one. I don't care, I'm not writing it for you.
I always talk about the smell and how I will always remember it. Or I bring up my connection with the FDNY, harkening back to kindergarten. My class went on a trip to Engine company 159/Satellite 5. As the trip ended, they got a call and quickly boarded their rig and tore out of the firehouse. I knew right then and there I wanted to be a firefighter.
While that dream might have been taken from me, I found new purpose. Just like that day. A day that began with such serenity and innocence... that we have not seen since. We were thrust without warning, into the center of history.
We became new people that day, more unified and at the same time more fearful. We swore to, "never forget" and to, "rebuild, stronger, better, learning from the mistakes of our past." We vowed not to let fear overcome us. We were, "united in freedom." Nothing has looked the same since we awoke from our slumber that day and looked into the heart of darkness.
Oh how far we've fallen. Freedom has been replaced by a shackling of our basic human rights. I find myself disgusted in many - not all - but many of my, "fellow Americans." You have let the dissenting voices of a madman and his evil brood warp your minds. There is a darkness at the center of this. It is a darkness that has encroached like a plague.
They told you that he would clean up the country. He claimed, falsely, that people of another race, "raped and murdered civilians." That was his opening salvo in what has been an embarrassment of incompetence. Thus began a never ending and systematic take down of every core ideal that our nation was founded upon. From the denial of women's rights, to his treatment of innocents....children, caged like rabid animals. He has injected baseless fear into the minds of once decent, normal citizens. A fear that has turned into a malaise. We let it fester. Now it's here and it wants to stay.
Since then, an all out assault on civil rights, science, education and basic civility have reigned. Now there are agents of the state in American Cities. These thugs hide behind masks, and carry heavy assault weapons . They captured American citizens. And we have done nothing to stop it. These hit men have killed mothers and daughters. They serve the whims of an unstable maniac and his brood. This is not America. This is not a nation united.
It is flat out exhausting at times, to try and count the daily atrocities committed by this gutless scum.
His mindless followers say they're doing this, "to honor the ones we lost." When in reality, they are doing it based on their own mis-informed fear and hatred.
Once, he took a blind eye to bounties placed on the heads of American soldiers. He sent in government agents to fire weapons at peaceful protesters. They were then strafed by a U.S. military helicopter, in the middle of a major American city, the nations capital no less! The same capitol desecrated by an angry mob led by his followers.
The holder of the office of President of the United States of America should have the nations best interests at heart. This...inhumane being has no heart. He cares only about himself and his own interests. The president must be ready to compromise and negotiate. Instead, he has chosen insults and bullying. Is that what other Americans want to be known for?
His constant attacks on medicine and science have already led to a deadly disaster. They will undoubtedly lead us precipitously close to it again. He and his followers have continually made baseless and confusing attacks and accusations. These put the future of the human race at risk.
My doctors, like all others, have dedicated their lives to helping & saving lives. They have all gone through years of schooling. They've sacrificed family, friends, and relationships - to ensure they're at the top of their field every day.
With his regime in power, countless Americans have lost health coverage & died. I could have been among them, My Parkinson’s makes me one of the many who have what they call a, “pre-existing condition.” So, essentially, what I’m saying is anyone who voted for this prick wants me to die.
How many different kinds of despicable does this feckless piece of trash have to be until those who voted for him realize they've been lied to? The economy has not gotten better. No jobs have been created. Worst of all, basic civil liberties are actually under threat.
The color of someone's skin, their gender, who they chose to marry, or their ability... or lack of ability should not be anyone's defining characteristic. What should we define a person by? The moral content of their character. Yet he and his followers have none.
A united nation listens to its founding ideals, two of which he attacks on a daily basis. The Right To Free Speech and Freedom of the Press. The press is not the enemy. It never was. They report the truth, which is something that terrifies this tiny man.
Immigrants are not the enemy. They are not illegal. No human being can be, "illegal."
Women are not the enemy.
Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Queer, Non-binary, Transgender, Cis-Gender People are not the enemy.
Science and History are not the enemy.
Canada is not the enemy for crying out loud.
He should not have been able to run again based on overwhelming evidence pointing to his absolute & total guilt. That alone should have been more than enough for people to realize how corrupt the wretched scum he is.
Many former high level staffers from his first term have painted a picture of a chaotic mess. It was led by an off the rails, self serving, egotistical maniac. How many books were, and continue to be written?
Thanks to him, we are less united than ever before. Our own government is failing us and our most trusted allies no longer have any belief in us.
We have forgotten what we learned following September 11, 2001.. Instead we've openly welcomed the oppression of our ideals. We have embraced a fascist ideology. One we thought we had vanquished decades ago.
The fabric of trust between the government and its people has been torn asunder. He's following the nazi playbook to the letter. He preaches hatred under the guise of, "necessary" change,. Actual change is what he fears.
The ground beneath our feet is crumbling under the weight of this ongoing dystopian nightmare. It's orchestrated by billionaires and bureaucrats like him. Our worst sci-fi nightmares come to fruition. Their regime is a disease that thrives in darkness, it thrives when we ignore it. Fighting is our only chance. We cannot be consumed by what divides us any longer.
Is this who you want leading our nation? Those who voted for him. I beg of you to take a moment to look inside yourself and ask, "Does he stand for the same things I do?" Is a man who mocks handicapped people one who I want running the nation? This...man who labels countries, "shitholes." A coward who then insults and threatens cities in his own nation, is he the right choice? This..."man" who brags about sexual assault and ignores women's rights. Is that truly what you, or your children want? Look within yourselves and question if you honestly think this is the right track.
This needs to be stopped. These same elements of corruption have continued this course, unchecked far too long. He's betting on the naïve and weak minded to stay in power.
The change we actually need is for this regime to crumble at the might of truth, reason & democracy. Throughout history we have seen empires rise and fall. Yet, even the highest leaders, ones with absolute power, crumble. It is time for this dictatorship to do the same. In defense of liberty, we have to fight.
This cannot be the new normal. This is not OK. We as a human race should march forward as a society, not regress. We simply need the resolve. The pure grit to fight back. That's what you do when faced with a bully. You dig in and you say, "No." Sure there will be times when the battle is seemingly insurmountable. But the summit of any mountain is within reach, we need to work together to get to it back. Hate, oppression. Fear and intolerance? This is not what America stands for.
I love my country. That said, I, nor any of you should recognize a government that tries to silence its own people. He has tarnished our image and made a mockery of us on the global stage. He has done nothing but make us a shameful shell of a once great idea. Other countries, countries that stood by us as allies are watching us now with pity.
He is evil to the core. The only thing that evil needs to succeed is for those who are good, and pure of heart...to sit by and do nothing. We can make a change, we don't have to take this. We cannot despair. The anguish that is now upon us is the result of the bitterness of a man who hates human progress.
Things can be good again. Just like that time 25 years ago when we looked into the heart of chaos and chose the path of dignity and hope. You see someone fall, you pick them up and you carry them.
You are Americans dammit, You are human beings! You, the American people, have the power to make life free and wonderful again. There are more people who are in the shadows, questioning the ruthlessness of this madman. For you, it is time to step free from the cloak of fear and stand up to fight for what you know is right.
America was founded on one principle above all else. That is that we fight for what we believe in, no matter the odds or consequences. The problems we are currently facing can be solved. But we have to do it together. It 's said that a person can do anything once they realize they're a part of something bigger. Well, you are a part of that something bigger. We all are, and now is the time to show it, to be a part of a nobler cause. It’s built on guile and sheer willpower.
Even the smallest acts of hope help push the sun through the darkness of tyranny. You see, tyranny requires authoritarianism. However, authoritarianism is brittle. It cracks at the first sign of opposition.
A friend of mine lost her father and uncle that day. Did she seek to belittle and tamp down the rights and beliefs of others? No. She became a nurse. One who swore an oath to care, and to do no harm. She didn't hide behind the mask of fear and hate. She chose the path of kindness and of helping all.
With hope - together, we can do anything we set our minds to. This includes bringing peace to our society again. In the name of freedom. In the name of Science. In the name of Gender and Sexual equality. In the name of Immigrants rights, Black rights, and human rights, we have to fight this. We are fighting for a new day, a new world,. One that is free from the grasp of an absolute lunatic. We have to fight for a world of reason, a world where progress will lead to the utopia we know we can become. One of reverence and resonance. A world we wish we could return to. Where flags fly with pride, not prejudice.
Freedom is a pure idea. It occurs without instruction.
We have seen the strength of ideas when they are made real. We must make real these self evident truths; What unites us can and will be far, far better than what divides us.
The American flag waved proudly following September 11, 2001 was not one of arrogance. It was one of pride. Pride in our nation. Pride in each other. In what we can do to help others. And it is my hope that we can eventually reclaim what we have lost.
The tides in history are impossible to predict. A fire was lit on that dark day 25 years ago. It should not be remembered as a fire of destruction, but as the flame of hope.