9/11 remembered -- and Bush's blank stare finally explained
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9/11 remembered -- and Bush's blank stare finally explained
Today is September 11 -- an important day in American history (still the most important one of the 21st Century) and always a good day to reflect. As one expected, the day has a somewhat different feel now that we're passed the 10th anniversary. Like the JFK assassination, 9/11 is passing into "do remember where you were...?" land. Time marches quickly. My kids were in grade school then, but this fall they're both voting in the presidential election.
For me, other than the horrific images on the TV, my most vivid memory is taking our adorable then-puppy golden retriever Rosie out back and sitting under a tree for a few minutes while she got some exercise before I dashed into work. All around me it was a perfect Indian summer day -- warm, with a powder blue sky. How could such beauty and such evil exist at the exact same moment, under that same glorious firmament?
The most important thing to remember today is the 2,977 decent everyday people who were killed for no other reason than showing up for work that morning, and the thousands more who continue to mourn their loss. The evil carried out against innocents by a power-mad Osama bin Laden and followers of his warped vision is unspeakable and unforgivable. It is why we pause to remember -- but as a socierty we can and should do more than just pause. Even after 11 years, there is much to learn and understand, in the hope there is never again a day like that.
It's always seemed that somewhere between the hologram lunacy of hard-core 9/11 truthers and the Ari Fleischer-inspired "Americans need to watch what thay say" crowd, there are a surprising amount of unanswered questions about that day. Bob Graham, the ex-Florida senator who was a top 9/11 prober before retiring from politics, co-authored with World Trade Center survivor Sharon Premoldi a piece calling for the investigation to be re-opened, largely because we just don't know enough about Saudi complicity:
The passage of time since September 11, 2001, has not diminished the distrust many of us feel surrounding the official story of how 9/11 happened and, more specifically, who financed and supported it. After eleven years, the time has come for the families of the victims, the survivors and all Americans to get the whole story behind 9/11.
For me, and I imagine for some other folks, one thing that always troubled me was the scene pictured at the top of the blog, when chief of staff Andrew Card whispered into then-President George W. Bush's ear -- according to his own account -- “A second plane hit the second tower. America is under attack.” That was shocking news that day, especially for anyone who saw it transpire on live TV and probably gasped or covered his mouth.
But Bush's reaction is off. He didn't say a word. He didn't ask any of the obvious questions, starting with "Do we know who did this?" There's a pained look on his face -- but not one of surprise. It's more like dread. Some conspiracists have claimed that's a "tell" that the government was actually in on the attacks. That's silly, and not just for all the obvious reasons. In a bizzaro world where some anti-matter President Bush did have a diabolical plot against his own country, would he really have that expression? A look of panic. Or regret.
I add "regret" because of a stunning report on the op-ed page of the New York Times today by former Times reporter Kurt Eichenwald. It said that advance warnings to the Bush administration of a looming al-Qaeda attack on America were both much more numerous and also more specific than we've been told before now.
He writes:
The direct warnings to Mr. Bush about the possibility of a Qaeda attack began in the spring of 2001. By May 1, the Central Intelligence Agency told the White House of a report that “a group presently in the United States” was planning a terrorist operation. Weeks later, on June 22, the daily brief reported that Qaeda strikes could be “imminent,” although intelligence suggested the time frame was flexible.
But some in the administration considered the warning to be just bluster. An intelligence official and a member of the Bush administration both told me in interviews that the neoconservative leaders who had recently assumed power at the Pentagon were warning the White House that the C.I.A. had been fooled; according to this theory, Bin Laden was merely pretending to be planning an attack to distract the administration from Saddam Hussein, whom the neoconservatives saw as a greater threat. Intelligence officials, these sources said, protested that the idea of Bin Laden, an Islamic fundamentalist, conspiring with Mr. Hussein, an Iraqi secularist, was ridiculous, but the neoconservatives’ suspicions were nevertheless carrying the day.
In response, the C.I.A. prepared an analysis that all but pleaded with the White House to accept that the danger from Bin Laden was real.
So Eichenwald raises a ton of questions -- but I think he answered one, the one about Bush's expression. He didn't need to ask who had done this, because he already knew. And the pained grimace is explained by the fact that he'd done so little, if anything, to stop them.
There's a lot to ponder here. Americans might want to ask themselves why one of the two main candidates for president is advised by the exact same neo-con cabal that was so irresponsible 11 years ago. And they should support Bob Graham and the others who'd like to see further investigation. The friends and loved ones of 2,977 victims of 9/11 deserve more than just our silence,
WWBD???— Wiseman6- Look on Bush's face indicate he failed on that day.
Four hijacked planes filled with gasoline flew over our skies for hours with their transponders turned off. Bush and Chenney failed to command the defense service at their disposal to protect the country for hours.
The moment captured in the photo is only the after shock in the face of a failed commander in chief.— Seed - Criticism of the failed commander in chief on September 11, 2001 would have been inappropriate.
Failure of criticise the failed leader in September 11, 2002 and onward would be failure to excercise democratic right of a citizen.— Seed - Bull. Will wants us to believe that some journolist at the NYT's opinion matters more than the 9-11 Commission. There is nothing new here. Just the media publishing an opinion piece as "fact." There is a reason this is not news, except in the left wing blogoshpehere. — CD75
- Will is citing a piece for the op-ed page. Why did the NYT run it there and not in the news pages? Because it is a hack job opinion piece. It is not a news story. — CD75
- The Know Nothings trumpet their willful ignorance and want to remain ignorant about 9/11. Did you even read the article:
"Bob Graham, the ex-Florida senator who was a top 9/11 prober before retiring from politics, co-authored with World Trade Center survivor Sharon Premoldi a piece calling for the investigation to be re-opened, largely because we just don't know enough about Saudi complicity"— tom-104 - So classy Will - 2,500 people died in a terrorist attack and you post a joke Bush picture to make 9/11 a politcal statement. What a dirt bag you are.— reddog44
- Can't believe it's been 11 years now. A freshman in college probably has no idea what it's like when Americans of all political persuasions are all on the same page.— wokmaster
- How is the moment Bush was informed about the second plane hitting the second tower considered "a joke Bush picture"? Idiot.— wokmaster
- Real class you clown. Politics today. Even Obummer was respectful. NY Slimes took a shot so you didn't want to be upstaged.— georgel
- My goodness. If you're STILL trying to politicize this, you're much lower than I thought.— RG
- Rufus, you really are dense. You obviously had no idea what that picture symbolized. You read what another conservative troll wrote and you echoed what he said. With all of the assinine things that you post (the Bomar joke, "Obama compared his presidency to Lincoln", "why don't the Dems have John Kerry speak?", etc.), the phrase better for someone to think I'm an idiot than to open my mouth and remove all doubt, suits you. Have a little respect on 9/11. This picture is very symbolic to some of us - whether we liked Bush or not.— wokmaster
- A more fitting picture would be of the only living impeached POTUS, Slick Willy. After all he had several chances to cap Bin Laden but wimped out. Will you fit right in at Philly.com, that leading edge news source that still has no mention of the Muslims storming our embassy in Cairo. Can't blame them after all the talk from the Kenyan about how great the so called Arab Spring is.— MilesLong1
- Nobody, and I mean NOBODY would have known how to react at that moment if they were the President of the United States. He was being filmed in real time. He didn't get the news delivered behind closed doors and have a few moments to compose himself. Under the circumstances, I would say Bush handled himself well.— wokmaster
- "How is the moment Bush was informed about the second plane hitting the second tower considered "a joke Bush picture"? Idiot".
Dorky-
Let's see, picture posted by "Bunch of B.S.", a treasonous LIB "journalist", with no comment??...Are you saying it's a compliment, he just can't stomach writing the words? Otherwise what else would it be except another attack..that's all the Lib media does. Not even the fact that today we are once again reminded that W got us through the worst attack ever would change that mantra of lies and hate.— sarah89
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