A friend started a meme sort of thing asking "Where were you when the first plane hit the Trade Center?"
It's one of those "When Kennedy Was Shot" moments. You may not remember where you went to lunch or even who with just yesterday, but say 9/11 nothing else and people get quiet and can tell you, to the molecule where they were, what they were doing, and how they felt. It is a crystallizing moment.
I was sitting on my couch drinking coffee and watching the morning news while I folded laundry, wondering what I would prepare for dinner and what needed to be taken out of the freezer or if I had to run up to the market. Mundane, trivial, everyday matters. I was pregnant and not feeling quite good in the mornings. As I watched the news they had a report of a plane, just a plane, maybe, flying in to the World Trade Center. They were working on confirming it.
As they showed the plane flying into the second building and you knew at that very moment that it wasn't some sort of horrible accident, everything in my body clutched. I froze and tears streamed from my eyes, which in itself is a miracle. I never cry, but this, I knew at that very moment, would change everything. An attack of this size would not and could not go unanswered. The book on computer programming fell from my hand and remained on the floor for the rest of the day. I managed to call my husband, sobbing, asking if he was watching the news.
I thought, at the time that there would never be another moment so crystal clear and tragic to me. It is evidence of my hubris that I would be proven disastrously wrong a few months later.
There are those who study history to learn from it. There are those that love politics and the meandering trails and machinations involved in the whole process. I am one of those people. I knew that we would soon be at war with someone. I didn't know who. I was pretty sure that it was arabic in nature, some fanatical islamic retard. I was right. Before that day I knew of Osama bin Laden only peripherally. I had heard of the Taliban in Afghanistan and it's atrocities to women. Since then we have all become very educated in to how these amoeba work. They believe in fundamentalism. I shall then hold them in a fundamental life form, for they deserve no more as they have shown no evidence of anything more than hate and murder.
Since that day, I have two sons who have been to Iraq a total of three times and Afghanistan once. Thank God both have come home as whole as any boy sent in to war. We have liberated the Iraqi people who are just now learning to be free. It will take a while. We are busy working to eradicate the horror of the Taliban in Afghanistan. I have seen a rebirth of national pride not seen since Reagan was in office.
I will say this, almost everything I know about Islam I have learned from the Taliban. I have learned of its message of hate, murder, intolerance, misogyny, and fanaticism demanding death. I have learned that it is not a religion that I would consider anything but an abomination and heresy of the God I know. We don't follow the same God. Not anymore. They have bastardized God. There is no heaven for them, no virgins, no mercy.
We survive horrors such as 9/11 knowing that they will not go to the same heaven their victims are now enjoying. I'm OK with imagining an Old Testament God for them.
5 comments:
"I will say this, almost everything I know about Islam I have learned from the Taliban. I have learned of its message of hate, murder, intolerance, misogyny, and fanaticism demanding death. I have learned that it is not a religion that I would consider anything but an abomination and heresy of the God I know. We don't follow the same God. Not anymore. They have bastardized God. There is no heaven for them, no virgins, no mercy."
Impressive, though I would bother to inform myself before making bigotted remarks like that. Maybe all the muslims learnt about christianity they learnt from the crusades? Perhaps more in the modern era they are following the good christian preachings of the westboro church as indicative of modern christian views of the world.
There are all types in this world. All of them, judaism, christianity and islam preach peace, while fanatics of all three will subvert the word of God to their own ends for power.
I am seriously disappointed that you could string together that slew of hate and poison.
So how much did you know about Islam before 09/11/2001? I'm sure you knew just about as much as anyone who'd gone through public school in America. I knew enough to pass the test on the Crusades in World History class. In other words, not much.
I will tell you this much, I've educated myself since. I know what is true Islam, and what is the BS put our my men afraid of women and anyone who doesn't think exactly like they do... No, not the Democratic Party in America... Islamic Fundamentalists.
Have you ever noticed that the first thing any fundamental in anything does is subjugate the thing they fear the most, usually women, in other cultures it's anyone who isn't what they are. Fear is a great motivator for the sheople.
How much did I know about Islam before the tragic events of 9/11? Quite a lot actually. For the past 20 years I have worked mostly with muslims. More of a fluke than my going out of the way for that. As part of their faith it is their duty to spread the words of their religion. This is much the same as our religion preaches the same message. Mark 16:15 "And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature."
I asked questions, and saw that the religion of Islam is much the same as that of Christianity. My vision of what Islam was, and the answers I got disturbed me because it is not what is portrayed in the media. Is it oppressive of women, no, and it affords more rights to women than what has been the tradition in most of the rest of modern history.
Is it perhaps a bit more backwards than the freedoms and liberties we enjoy in North America? Yes, but I have to keep telling myself that these are semi-theocratic countries. We would not be much better if we followed the laws laid out in the bible to run our countries.
I do admire their absolute belief though. It is not feigned as I see so much with the christians in north america. It is really, truly, absolute honest to God faith. The sort of faith you have saying two plus two is four.
Are there aspects of Islam that I disagree with, of course. But one of the first tenets of their faith, as in all the ones before is the decree that THOU SHALT NOT KILL.
I just found your post rather contrary to your beliefs. If it involves global warming, you want only facts and pure science, but with this issue you are willing to go off on a whimsical rant without discovering what their religion is about? That's why I was disappointed. We believe in Christ and our salvation through him, however I am sure you would be rather shocked at the christian sects that exist in the middle east. The rampant christian fanaticism is the same as what we see in the media with the so called fundamental islamists. Every single muslim I know hate the Taliban, hate Al'Qaeda, hate all the dictatorial regimes that exist there, precisely because that is the face of Islam that is presented to the world. Every one of them feel nothing but sorrow for the victims of suicide bombings and terrorist acts. Every single one of them believe that the misguided person that performed those acts has damned their immortal soul. The same way we would feel over a christian that commits suicide. They will be forever damned.
I'm sure that I would feel the same way as they do if every foreign news service paraded around those Westboro idiots or the IRA as indicative of what christian values are.
All fundamentalism is bad. All fanaticism is bad. It's like any good doctor will tell you, too much of any one thing is unhealthy. I just hope the future is a brighter one for those countries currently overthrowing the regimes that have been oppressing the populace and funding the terrorists.
Well said, sir!
I had planned to get around to reading the Quran because I like being well-read and informed. That ended with nine eleven. If I were not too old there was a part of me that would have enjoyed getting in the fight.
One of the things Muslims believe is that it is OK to lie to nonbelievers. This is born out by my limited interaction with them. You are just a dog, to be treated worse than I would treat any dog. So the believer is not held to a high standard, but a low one. This is the opposite of Christianity.
With regards to Zalibar's statement, I had a preacher's wife once refer to some other Christian people as fanatics in conversation. I didn't respond, because it wasn't the time or place, but my immediate thought was "Wouldn't you have called Jesus' twelve fanatics?" And, "is that a bad thing or a good thing?" Shouldn't each real believer have some pride in being called a fanatic? To me that means they actually believe what they profess to believe.
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