Six Years Later... Where Did Our Resolve Go?

Somber memories enter our hearts and minds when this fateful day comes every fall. On this day, six years ago we saw the very embodiment of evil before our very eyes. I can distinctly remember the knot in my stomach after witnessing the symbols of democracy and capitalism shattered on a beautiful Tuesday morning. On this fateful day we saw the very embodiment of human nature in its worst form.


Terrorism struck our shores, crippling the ivory tower dream many of us had of what America symbolized. We saw wars, battles, genocide, terrorist attacks as events that occur in lands afar off. We saw them as symbols of the uncivilized world, not to be mistaken with the industrialized world we thought we knew. In that sad day, our innocence was taken away, shaping an entire generation the way the attacks on Pearl Harbor changed those who witnessed it.

On the same day that we saw the horrendous results human nature can bring, we also saw the incredible potential we can have when we apply ourselves in a selfless manner. We saw and read the stories of those who went back in to the burning buildings in an attempt to rescue others. We witnessed how the simple game of baseball could bring a sense of normalcy to the country by watching a New York team battle incredible odds again and again. We witnessed a defiant leader throw the first pitch in a World Series game as a sign to those who hated us that the U.S. was still here, still relevant, and very much alive. We rallied around the flag that has flown as a symbol of freedom and hope and stated that we would go about this new battle with the same resolve that we entered the last great battle of history...

In spite of it all, here we are six years to the day of the terror attacks on our beloved country. Ground Zero still bears the scars of that day, with no progress being made to honor those who died and bickering arising as to what should be done with the land. We find ourselves mired in a war we so eagerly supported out of our thirst for revenge and our willingness to fight the enemy wherever and whenever, taking the fight to them as opposed to having our cities be the battlegrounds they were on September 11, 2001.

What happened to the resolve we so proudly expressed in the aftermath of 9/11? We have lost sight of the purpose of this fight and it is disconcerting to see. We fight amongst ourselves, our enemy continues to threaten us and now they see us divided. A house divided against itself will not stand. Six years ago we stood strong, proud to be Americans, knowing that this new chapter in history will have the American imprint on it. It is my fear that we have lost the grip we had in writing this new era.

Where did we lose sight of this? And where do we go from here? Questions that no one has the answer for...