9/11/01: The Day As It Happened

Today, I'll be departing from my traditional political focus and recount the day that changed so many lives just nine short years ago. I struggled to understand the impact of that day and still have yet to grasp it's full meaning. One thing, however, is resoundingly clear; we are at war with an enemy that desires nothing less than the complete eradication of our way of life. Minimalize it, trivialize it, blame it on our presence in their nation or whatever else you wish; the fact remains that Islam does not tolerate dissent and will not rest until all believe as they do, or are destroyed.

For the rest of the day, September 11th, 2001; as it happened.

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President Bush Reflects on Flight 93

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Never Forget

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Questions Without Answers

Many across the nation and the world end the day with questions, many without answers. Who is responsible? Why would they attack heavily populated Manhattan? Why planes and buildings? Where are my loved ones, and are they safe? What does this mean for our military?

Things as simple as person to person communication were in complete disarray, even simple cell phone communication was impacted for days after the attacks. It would take days, weeks and in some cases months before these questions were understood and answered. Our world is still changing as a result of that day, but one thing remains certain, 'We Will Never Forget!'

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Project 2996: Remembering Andrew Stern

This is my blog post from last year's Project 2996.

Andrew Stern, 41, of Bellmore, N.Y., a bond broker at Cantor Fitzgerald, worked on the 104th floor of 1 World Trade Center. A huge New York Yankees fan, Stern helped coach his son's Little League team and took his son to Yankees games. Stern usually rose at 4 a.m. to go to the gym before work. An avid runner and solid athlete, he ran in the New York City Marathon

USA Today

September 11, 2001 started off just as any other late summer day in the Hudson Valley. Andrew rose that morning at 4:00 AM for is usual morning run. It was unusually clear and the sun shown brightly on the two towers at the center of World Trade Plaza. Andrew worked on the 104th floor of WTC 1, and was busy at work when his life and the lives of thousands of others were violently shaken at 8:45 that morning. He was one of 700 employees Cantor Fitzgerald is estimated to have lost that day.

Unfortunately, the further from 9/11/01 we get, the harder it is to find information on those who were lost that day, but I was able to find a tribute written to Andrew on September 11, 2006. Do yourself a favor and read it.

God Bless and keep Andrew Stern's family. May they be comforted.

For more information on Project 2996, please visit their website.

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Lives Lost September 11, 2001

List of World Trade Center Victims

American Airlines Flight 11 (Scroll down a bit to find the names)

United Airlines Flight 175

Pentagon

American Airlines Flight 77

United Airlines Flight 93

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President Addresses The Nation

President Bush addresses the nation, saying "thousands of lives were suddenly ended by evil" and asks for prayers for the families and friends of Tuesday's victims. "These acts shattered steel, but they cannot dent the steel of American resolve," he says. The president says the U.S. government will make no distinction between the terrorists who committed the acts and those who harbor them. He adds that government offices in Washington are reopening for essential personnel Tuesday night and for all workers Wednesday.

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Reports of Missing Heroes

The New York Police Department says that at least 78 officers are missing. The city also says that as many as half of the first 400 firefighters on the scene were killed.

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President Arrives Back At White House

President Bush arrives back at the White House in Washington, D.C.

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World Trade Center 7 Collapses

The 47-story Building 7 of the World Trade Center complex collapses. The evacuated building is damaged when the twin towers across the street collapse earlier in the day. Other nearby buildings in the area remain ablaze.

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President Departs For Washington, D.C.

President George W. Bush leaves Offutt Air Force Base near Omaha, Nebraska headed back to Washington, D.C.

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Evil Has a Name

U.S. officials say there are "good indications" that Saudi militant Osama bin Laden, suspected of coordinating the bombings of two U.S. embassies in 1998 and a bomb attack against the USS Cole in 2000, is involved in the attacks, based on "new and specific" information developed since the attacks.

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National Security Council Meeting

Karen Hughes, a White House counselor, says the president is at an undisclosed location, later revealed to be Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska, and is conducting a National Security Council meeting by phone. Vice President Dick Cheney and National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice are in a secure facility at the White House. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is at the Pentagon.

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Services Partially Restored

At a news conference, Mayor Giuliani says that subway and bus services are partially restored in New York City. Asked about the number of people killed, Giuliani says, "I don't think we want to speculate about that -- more than any of us can bear."

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Flights Grounded Through Sept 12

The FAA announces there will be no U.S. commercial air traffic until noon EDT Wednesday at the earliest. It's nearly a week before air travel returns to normal within the United States.

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Coordinated Terrorist Attack?

Senior FBI sources tell CNN they are working on the assumption that the four airplanes that crashed were hijacked as part of a coordinated terrorist attack.

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Navy Stations Warships Off East Coast

The Pentagon says five warships and two aircraft carriers will leave the U.S. Naval Station in Norfolk, Virginia, to protect the East Coast from further attack and to reduce the number of ships in port. The two carriers, the USS George Washington and the USS John F. Kennedy, are headed for the New York coast. Other ships headed to sea include frigates and guided missile destroyers capable of shooting down aircraft.

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State of Emergency Delcared

A state of emergency is declared by the city of Washington.

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President Bush Speaks

President Bush, speaking from Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana, says that all appropriate security measures are being taken, including putting the U.S. military on high alert worldwide. He asks for prayers for those killed or wounded in the attacks and says, "Make no mistake, the United States will hunt down and punish those responsible for these cowardly acts."

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Just 50 Planes Left to Land

All but 50 planes over the United States have been successfully diverted and recovered. The last 50 in the air report no problems.

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