Setember 11 Attack: A Crime Without Parallel in American History

[Molok]

...a full-blown sociological analysis of ex-Mormons...

That's all the HoundDog ever does, in thread after thread after thread. Maybe he's fibbing about being exmormon.

whaaaat? No! Next you'll be saying he isn't really a Democrat either.

[I Have Questions]

Bait and Switch Wang Chung. That's you're new nickname!

It’s “That’s your new nickname!”

[Marcus]

That's all the HoundDog ever does, in thread after thread after thread. Maybe he's fibbing about being exmormon.

whaaaat? No! Next you'll be saying he isn't really a Democrat either.

: D

[canpakes]

Perhaps it would be wise to let individuals grieve without trying to divert attention with a bait and switch regarding September 11th, …

Who are you referring to, who is being prevented from grieving?

[MG 2.0]

But on the bright side, I'm just glad an 85 year old can type so much crap.

Why are you making light of the fact that a poster might be old? This statement is so condescending. You will be 85 years old someday. Would you want someone to make fun of what you write or what you say simply because of your age? I think the heading of this thread WAS misleading.

Regards,
MG

[Everybody Wang Chung]

But on the bright side, I'm just glad an 85 year old can type so much crap.

Why are you making light of the fact that a poster might be old? This statement is so condescending. You will be 85 years old someday. Would you want someone to make fun of what you write or what you say simply because of your age? I think the heading of this thread WAS misleading.

Fibber,

Is there a factual basis to the story HoundDog told about his age and the 1975 drive to a Pacific Island with his son? I realize it's difficult for you to differentiate between humor directed at someone who lies about their age and actual ageism. Please make a more thoughtful effort.

A rare 1975 picture of HoundDog driving his son to the heretofore, unnamed Pacific Island:

[Moksha]

I want to drive to Busan, Korea, starting in Salt Lake City.

By the way, I have had two meals in the last two days, and they have both come from Meals on Wheels—already looking forward to tomorrow. I am going to be so sad when Trump ends that program.

[IWMP]

I thought this threat was going to be about the twin towers. Not because of the date but because of the, "crime without parallel in American history".

People won't be thinking of an event from the 1800s. But, people all over the world know about the twin towers. If you were to ask anyone I know what the worst thing to happen on 9/11 is, they'd say the twin towers and we don't even write our dates like that.

I feel like maybe the title was baiting people. Maybe putting the year in the title instead of leaving people to make assumptions and have expectations would have been helpful.

I didn't even know that there are other known historical attacks on this day.

Crime without parallel suggests that it's the worst thing to happen. But in the minds of the people, not just in America, the twin towers attack is significant. To me and in my memory (I may be wrong), it started a war. It was the beginning of my knowledge of terrorism. (I wasn't aware of the IRA terrorism at that age). It wasn't only horrific to see on the news but it instilled a fear that at any time and anywhere someone could just destroy mass lives. Things changed even here. People became afraid to travel, rules changed. Bins were removed from a lot of public places or they were changed to clear see through bins. We suddenly had to fear things being left laying around with no apparent owner.

I would say for a lot of people, the twin towers attack would be a more likely crime without parallel given that it shook the world, not just America.

In saying that though... not sure the drama is needed.

[Marcus]

I hope you will join me in taking a moment to reflect on the tragedy of the Mountain Meadows Massacre, which took place on September 11, 1857.

This event, which has been described as a crime with no parallel in American history for its sheer atrocity and evil, is considered the largest act of domestic terrorism in the United States prior to the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.

Maybe it's not understood how significant the Mountain Meadows Massacre is to people who grew up Mormon. I lived through 9/11 in New York and it was truly horrifying. People in my family were in the Firefighting and Police Departments and very involved in the cleanup. Many in my family still attend, every year, various fund raising events that came out of that.

But unfortunately, more than one horrific thing can harrow one's soul. I gradually learned the truth about the earlier 9/11, and long before I understood the situation I was trained to glibly offer the Mormon excuses. It just didn't occur to me in my early and pre-teens that I was being lied to, and that I was participating in that lie by trusting my lds leaders and older family members to tell me the truth, and then repeating those lies that I thought were true.

It's humiliating to think that I fell for that, but now I see with every new situation that comes up that this is the typical lds way. Lie, obfuscate and shift blame, and when the evidence becomes undeniable, make up excuses or pretend it didn't happen. When the full information is out, argue 'we've always told the truth.' Etc., etc., etc. It is a harrowing event that the church I grew up in was fully responsible for.

So sadly, there are two 9/11s that I see as horrific.

[Limnor]

I hesitate to open up a bit but you and Everybody Wang Chung have inspired me to do so. Besides, it’s just a message board so what difference does it make, really? Also there is a lingering doubt that it will be believed.

I was in the bowels of USSTRATCOM on 9/11/2001. We were in the middle of a large-scale exercise and I was coming off the night shift. I had just finished compiling and presenting an update on the exercise scenario when I walked by a small conference room that had CNN on. The first plane had crashed into the first tower and we spent a few minutes discussing whether it was an air traffic controller error, a small plane, or something else when the second plane hit.

There was a “battle deck” in the building, fully manned that morning for the exercise. It was instant chaos. I was tasked to try and figure out the status of all aviation in the states and was able to account for every flight except two Korean airlines flights. I still don’t know what happened to them. I’ll never forget the STRATCOM Commander’s calm reaction in which he said we had better cancel the exercise.

Pres. Bush came to STRATCOM that day as many of you will recall. They ushered all of us junior officers out of the briefing room. I was a targeting officer at that time, and was asked about potential targets. It was staggering.

I had a friend who died in the Pentagon. Angie Houtz. We had gone to school together.

The next decade or so was filled with time spent in the gulf and I eventually retired about 10 years ago.

I know only a little about the MM massacre but it would disturb me to have to try and explain it to outsiders and I’m certain it would add to the shelf, as I’ve heard it called.

Thank you for your post, Marcus.