I just got this scary-as-hell email forward today.
Might this lend another answer to why "they" hate us, other than because of our "freedom?"
Here's the forward:
Here SHE is, the USS New York, made from the World Trade Center!
(picture to the right -->)
It was built with 24 tons of scrap steel from the World Trade Center .
It is the fifth in a new class of warship - designed for missions that include special operations against terrorists. It will carry a crew of 360 sailors and 700 combat-ready Marines to be delivered ashore by helicopters and assault craft.
Steel from the World Trade Center was melted down in a foundry in Amite , LA to cast the ship's bow section. When it was poured into the molds on Sept 9, 2003 , 'those big rough steelworke rs treated it with total reverence,' recalled Navy Capt. Kevin Wensing, who was there. 'It was a spiritual moment for everybody there.'
Junior Chavers, foundry operations manager, said that when the trade center steel first arrived, he touched it with his hand and the 'hair on my neck stood up.' 'It had a big meaning to it for all of us,' he said. 'They knocked us down. They can't keep us down. We're going to be back.'
The ship's motto? 'Never Forget'
Please keep this going so everyone can see what we are made of in this country!
4 comments:
Rog,
Vengeance is never a healthy solution alone. But...if it was a member of your immediate family that died on 9/11 you might think differently. My brother Joe had personal freinds that died that day in the Twin Towers. Mary Ellen's family was a victim to a "domestic terrorist" with the murder of her parents in 1986. When it strikes close to home, you think differently.
How much do we as a country put up with from the bullies of extreme fanatic terrorism? They can hate us all they choose to but ultimately we must defend our country and our allies around the world. In a perfect world we could negotiate peace with the terrorists. From what I have observed, terrorists only understand brute force, death and destruction.
I respect your position, but disagree with you. Here, as I tell Bri, Brad and Lis, we agree to disagree.
Peace,
Tom Eardley
If vengeance is the idea, why are we in Iraq? Why did we shift our focus from Afghanistant to Iraq, thereby allowing the Taliban to return? Why are we even now beating the drum in Iran's direction?
Who is the bully? We helped Bin Laden and Afghanistan happen. The world knew it, and many were still on our side.
But we lost focus...because vengeance is not the goal. Global domination and control of petroleum are the goals.
Otherwise, we'd sever all ties with Saudi Arabia, while we're at it.
And I think you'd agree, Dad, that with you never having been out of the country (Caribbean not included) or met any one of the millions of victims of U.S. imperialism around the world, you have only observed one side of "terrorism."
Like you said, I respect your right to an opinion. That means we keep talking!
Yes, lets keep talking. Because we can agree on many things.
We probably should have never invaded Iraq. I believe we shifted our focus on Iraq for two reasons. Number one, to protect our major oil supply interests in the Middle East and so George W could retaliate on Saddam for the assasination attempt on George HW.
I believe George W's downfall has been listening to the hawks like Rumsfeld and Cheney, ill advised at best and old war horses that don't understand the importance of building coalitions like George HW in the first Persian Gulf accomplished and every military expert of our modern age have used for strategy i.e.; FDR,Churchill and Stalin in WWII in destroying Hitler and Japan.
The firing of Rumsfeld was too little too late, Gates is just a lameduck solution to a major problem. But, the demise of Bin Laden or not, we must protect our oil supply interests in the world until someone comes up with a solution for energy replacement of fossil fuels.
And if we were truely desiring to accomplish global domination, which Karl Marx was driven by, then we could go over to the Middle East tomorrow and take over the region and all the countries would be under our military might. But we haven't and many countries including Iran,Libya,Egypt and so on maintain their sovereingty.
Finally, the U.S. is not a perfect place and has more than its share of faults in its government and leadership. But my question is, what country doesn't suffer similiar inconsistencies and hypocrisies? I believe we are one of the finest countries on earth, even considering all of our imperfections.
At the same time, I believe it is healthy to question our government. And remember this, in countries like Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, China, South Korea; the mere questioning of its leadership has landed its citizens in prison or killed.
One final note, the potential for negative karma in vengeance can come back to haunt the USS New York if that is the military leaders sole purpose. Only time will tell and Roger and Brad, if that is your point I agree there also.
I love and admire you both and as always as we debate this and defend our positions it helps me see your side better and hopefully you understand mine better as well.
Peace and Keep on Bloggin,
Dad(Tom)Eardley
Hi, all:
Just a little chime in--I actually felt a bit confused at first, Rog, when you posted the forward. Part of me, probably the DC part that was here that day, was like, "Hell, yeah, we built a ship out of the rubble." I didn't see what was so bad. Then I thought more about it the last couple days, and I decided what I liked was the idea of reusing some of the wreckage in the movement forward. But wouldn't it be cooler if instead of another instrument of war, artists used the steel to craft a monument to the dead, a memorial that would also symbolize hope for a future different from the one we pretty much know is coming (more conflict, more Muslim vs. the Western world [the Danish cartoons, and the recent anniversary and death threats, should be a pretty good indication what we're dealing with--not to mention what almost happened to the teacher who let her class name a teddy bear Muhammed])?
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