Archive for the ‘9/11’ Category
Obama, McCain Call Truce on 9/11 at Ground Zero
Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain will put their political campaigning aside for a day as the nation remembers the fallen heroes of Sept. 11th. They will make an unprecedented joint appearance at a Ground Zero commemoration and lay a wreath, without making any speeches.
Afterward, they will separately appear at a public form on civic engagement at Columbia University. Several cable news outlets plan to televise the forum live at 8 p.m. Eastern.
“Both parties have used it [9/11] for their own political benefits, but it is risky,” Trent Duffy, a former aide to President George W. Bush and a partner at the Washington communications firm HDMK, told Julianna Goldman of Bloomberg. The candidates “realize that the best statesmanship, and hence the best political move, is to not play politics on 9/11.”
Richard Stengel, managing editor of Time magazine and a co-moderator of the forum, told Politico.com’s Mike Allen that he will encourage the candidates to be “both eloquent and intimate about their beliefs in this area.”
“I hope they will be able to blend the personal with the political on this subject, so that they can talk about what is it in their own lives that made them believe and care about this, as opposed to just saying, ‘Here’s my policy,’
“Their lives have revolved around service. Both men, from an early age, had the idea of service built into their own view of their lives and what they would do with their lives. I think whoever is president will make service a big part of their administration.”
Pentagon Memorial Dedicated to Honor 9/11 Heroes
President Bush helped dedicate a memorial to 9/11 victims at the Pentagon today in a solemn ceremony to honor the 184 who died.
The text of his remarks can be found here:
For the families and friends of the fallen, this memorial will be a place of remembrance. Parents will come here to remember children who boarded Flight 77 for a field trip and never emerged from the wreckage. Husbands and wives will come here to remember spouses who left for work one morning and never returned home. People from across our nation will come here to remember friends and loved ones who never had the chance to say goodbye.
A memorial can never replace what those of you mourning a loved one have lost. We pray that you will find some comfort amid the peace of these grounds. We pray that you will find strength in knowing that our nation will always grieve with you.
Voice of America describes the memorial:
The memorial’s focus is 184 benches built over a pool of water – 59 of the benches face the Pentagon representing the passengers killed on American Airlines Flight 77. The remaining 125 benches face the opposite direction memorializing those killed within the building. Each is engraved with the name of one of the people killed that day at the Pentagon.
Private contributions of $21 million funded the project.
The memorial’s design was chosen through an international competition won by Keith Kaseman and his wife Julie Beckman.
“We wanted it to be like no other simply because that day was like no other,” Kaseman said. “It should be both individual and collective in nature, and ultimately it should be imbedded with enough hints and clues that begin to tell the story of the people who lost their lives. And make you think — but not prescribe how to think or what to feel.”
The memorial will open to the public at 7 p.m. Eastern today.
Pentagon Memorial Dedicated to Honor 9/11 Heroes
President Bush helped dedicate a memorial to 9/11 victims at the Pentagon today in a solemn ceremony to honor the 184 who died.
The text of his remarks can be found here:
For the families and friends of the fallen, this memorial will be a place of remembrance. Parents will come here to remember children who boarded Flight 77 for a field trip and never emerged from the wreckage. Husbands and wives will come here to remember spouses who left for work one morning and never returned home. People from across our nation will come here to remember friends and loved ones who never had the chance to say goodbye.
A memorial can never replace what those of you mourning a loved one have lost. We pray that you will find some comfort amid the peace of these grounds. We pray that you will find strength in knowing that our nation will always grieve with you.
Voice of America describes the memorial:
The memorial’s focus is 184 benches built over a pool of water – 59 of the benches face the Pentagon representing the passengers killed on American Airlines Flight 77. The remaining 125 benches face the opposite direction memorializing those killed within the building. Each is engraved with the name of one of the people killed that day at the Pentagon.
Private contributions of $21 million funded the project.
The memorial’s design was chosen through an international competition won by Keith Kaseman and his wife Julie Beckman.
“We wanted it to be like no other simply because that day was like no other,” Kaseman said. “It should be both individual and collective in nature, and ultimately it should be imbedded with enough hints and clues that begin to tell the story of the people who lost their lives. And make you think — but not prescribe how to think or what to feel.”
The memorial will open to the public at 7 p.m. Eastern today.
Seven Years After 9/11, We Still Mourn
It’s been seven years since that awful day that changed our lives. Our pain has not eased, and our memories have not dulled. Living on Long Island at the time, I stood at Ground Zero weeks after the attack. I recall as if it were yesterday how the smoke, and the smell, was still hovering over Lower Manhattan. I remember how I cried as I stood by the ruins. There are so many images of that day that would not go away as I looked at the rubble. Seven years later, they still remain.
I remember the 343 firefighters who climbed the stairwells and who never returned.
I remember the brave passengers on Flight 93 who fought back to their last breathe. We may never know just how brave they were. But we do know that their actions saved countless lives in the ground.
I remember the 125 people in the Pentagon who gave their lives in defense of our country.
All in all, there were 2,974 victims that day. Each going about their daily routine not knowing their fate. There were 246 who died on the four planes; 2,603 in the World Trade Center and on the ground; and 125 at the Pentagon. Authorities never found 24 people. More than 90 countries lost people in the attack.
The New York City Fire Department lost 341 firefighters and two paramedics. The New York City Police Department lost 23 officers. The Port Authority Police Department lost 37 officers. Private EMS units lost eight additional EMTs and paramedics.
Cantor Fitzgerald L.P., an investment bank on the 101st–105th floors of One World Trade Center, lost 658 employees alone.
Their sacrifice should never fade away.
God bless them, and their loved ones who still grieve. So that none among us will ever forget, their names can be found here.
***
Andy Newman of The New York Times writes this morning of the city’s loss.
The question of how New Yorkers view their view may seem abstract, trivial, remote, compared with the pain of thousands upon thousands who lost loved ones, friends or colleagues when the World Trade Center towers fell. But for a broad swath of New Yorkers for whom the two towers were primarily the crowning jewel of a cherished vista, the amputated skyline was a daily reminder of loss. The way they have reached accommodation, or not, with the transformed view provides yet another window into the city’s infinitely long process of recovery.
The 9/11 Commission Report can be viewed here.
The September 11 Digital Archive can be viewed here.
A 9/11 timeline can be viewed here.
9/11 news archives can be viewed here and here. Archived screenshots of online news reports can be viewed here.
Here is an NBC news report:
Say a prayer today if you can.
Seven Years After 9/11, We Still Mourn
It’s been seven years since that awful day that changed our lives. Our pain has not eased, and our memories have not dulled. Living on Long Island at the time, I stood at Ground Zero weeks after the attack. I recall as if it were yesterday how the smoke, and the smell, was still hovering over Lower Manhattan. I remember how I cried as I stood by the ruins. There are so many images of that day that would not go away as I looked at the rubble. Seven years later, they still remain.
I remember the 343 firefighters who climbed the stairwells and who never returned.
I remember the brave passengers on Flight 93 who fought back to their last breathe. We may never know just how brave they were. But we do know that their actions saved countless lives in the ground.
I remember the 125 people in the Pentagon who gave their lives in defense of our country.
All in all, there were 2,974 victims that day. Each going about their daily routine not knowing their fate. There were 246 who died on the four planes; 2,603 in the World Trade Center and on the ground; and 125 at the Pentagon. Authorities never found 24 people. More than 90 countries lost people in the attack.
The New York City Fire Department lost 341 firefighters and two paramedics. The New York City Police Department lost 23 officers. The Port Authority Police Department lost 37 officers. Private EMS units lost eight additional EMTs and paramedics.
Cantor Fitzgerald L.P., an investment bank on the 101st–105th floors of One World Trade Center, lost 658 employees alone.
Their sacrifice should never fade away.
God bless them, and their loved ones who still grieve. So that none among us will ever forget, their names can be found here.
***
Andy Newman of The New York Times writes this morning of the city’s loss.
The question of how New Yorkers view their view may seem abstract, trivial, remote, compared with the pain of thousands upon thousands who lost loved ones, friends or colleagues when the World Trade Center towers fell. But for a broad swath of New Yorkers for whom the two towers were primarily the crowning jewel of a cherished vista, the amputated skyline was a daily reminder of loss. The way they have reached accommodation, or not, with the transformed view provides yet another window into the city’s infinitely long process of recovery.
The 9/11 Commission Report can be viewed here.
The September 11 Digital Archive can be viewed here.
A 9/11 timeline can be viewed here.
9/11 news archives can be viewed here and here. Archived screenshots of online news reports can be viewed here.
Here is an NBC news report:
Say a prayer today if you can.
MSNBC Drops Olbermann, Matthews From Anchor Chairs
MSNBC’s grand experiment of using liberal commentators Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews as news anchors during the network’s election coverage appears to be over, reports Brian Stelter of The New York Times tonight on its web site.
After accusations of on-camera bias, and some animosity between the cable network and NBC, network executives decided over the weekend to replace the pair with David Gregory as the news anchor on election night and during the debates, Stelter writes. Olbermann and Matthews will appear as commentators.
“The most disappointing shift is to see the partisan attitude move from prime time into what’s supposed to be straight news programming,” said Davidson Goldin, formerly the editorial director of MSNBC and a co-founder of the reputation management firm DolceGoldin, as quoted in the report.
A portion of Stelter’s report is as follows:
Executives at the channel’s parent company, NBC Universal, had high hopes for MSNBC’s coverage of the political conventions. Instead, the coverage frequently descended into on-air squabbles between the anchors, embarrassing some workers at NBC’s news division, and quite possibly alienating viewers. Although MSNBC nearly doubled its total audience compared with the 2004 conventions, its competitive position did not improve, as it remained in last place among the broadcast and cable news networks. In prime time, the channel averaged 2.2 million viewers during the Democratic convention and 1.7 million viewers during the Republican convention.
The success of the Fox News Channel in the past decade along with the growth of political blogs have convinced many media companies that provocative commentary attracts viewers and lures Web browsers more than straight news delivered dispassionately.
“In a rapidly changing media environment, this is the great philosophical debate,” Phil Griffin, the president of MSNBC, said in a telephone interview Saturday. Fighting the ratings game, he added, “the bottom line is that we’re experiencing incredible success.”
But as the past two weeks have shown, that success has a downside. When the vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin lamented media bias during her speech, attendees of the Republican convention loudly chanted “NBC.”
In interviews, 10 current and former staff members said that long-simmering tensions between MSNBC and NBC reached a boiling point during the conventions. “MSNBC is behaving like a heroin addict,” one senior staff member observed. “They’re living from fix to fix and swearing they’ll go into rehab the next week.”
The issue may have come to a head when Olbermann, acting as the Republican convention anchor, apologized for the network for broadcasting a video tribute to the victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Here is a tape of that comment, along with the tribute that was aired:
“I’m sorry, it’s necessary to say this and I wanted to separate myself from the others on the air about this,” he said on air, looking shaken. “If at this late date, any television network had of its own accord showed that much videotape, and that much graphic videotape of 9/11, and I speak as somebody who lost a few friends there, it, we, would be rightly eviscerated at all quarters, perhaps by the Republican Party itself, for exploiting the memories of the dead and perhaps even for trying to evoke that pain again. If you reacted to that videotape the way I did, I apologize. It is a subject of great pain for many of us still and was probably not appropriate to be shown. We’ll continue in a moment.”
The statement was widely praised by liberal bloggers and commentators, and widely criticized by conservatives.
Olbermann told The New York Times today that that moment — and the perception that he is “not utterly neutral” — reignited the debate about his role on political nights.
“I found it ironic and instructive that I could have easily said exactly what I did say, exactly when I did say it, if I had been wearing a different hat, and nobody would have taken any issue,” he told the Times.
MSNBC Drops Olbermann, Matthews From Anchor Chairs
MSNBC’s grand experiment of using liberal commentators Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews as news anchors during the network’s election coverage appears to be over, reports Brian Stelter of The New York Times tonight on its web site.
After accusations of on-camera bias, and some animosity between the cable network and NBC, network executives decided over the weekend to replace the pair with David Gregory as the news anchor on election night and during the debates, Stelter writes. Olbermann and Matthews will appear as commentators.
“The most disappointing shift is to see the partisan attitude move from prime time into what’s supposed to be straight news programming,” said Davidson Goldin, formerly the editorial director of MSNBC and a co-founder of the reputation management firm DolceGoldin, as quoted in the report.
A portion of Stelter’s report is as follows:
Executives at the channel’s parent company, NBC Universal, had high hopes for MSNBC’s coverage of the political conventions. Instead, the coverage frequently descended into on-air squabbles between the anchors, embarrassing some workers at NBC’s news division, and quite possibly alienating viewers. Although MSNBC nearly doubled its total audience compared with the 2004 conventions, its competitive position did not improve, as it remained in last place among the broadcast and cable news networks. In prime time, the channel averaged 2.2 million viewers during the Democratic convention and 1.7 million viewers during the Republican convention.
The success of the Fox News Channel in the past decade along with the growth of political blogs have convinced many media companies that provocative commentary attracts viewers and lures Web browsers more than straight news delivered dispassionately.
“In a rapidly changing media environment, this is the great philosophical debate,” Phil Griffin, the president of MSNBC, said in a telephone interview Saturday. Fighting the ratings game, he added, “the bottom line is that we’re experiencing incredible success.”
But as the past two weeks have shown, that success has a downside. When the vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin lamented media bias during her speech, attendees of the Republican convention loudly chanted “NBC.”
In interviews, 10 current and former staff members said that long-simmering tensions between MSNBC and NBC reached a boiling point during the conventions. “MSNBC is behaving like a heroin addict,” one senior staff member observed. “They’re living from fix to fix and swearing they’ll go into rehab the next week.”
The issue may have come to a head when Olbermann, acting as the Republican convention anchor, apologized for the network for broadcasting a video tribute to the victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Here is a tape of that comment, along with the tribute that was aired:
“I’m sorry, it’s necessary to say this and I wanted to separate myself from the others on the air about this,” he said on air, looking shaken. “If at this late date, any television network had of its own accord showed that much videotape, and that much graphic videotape of 9/11, and I speak as somebody who lost a few friends there, it, we, would be rightly eviscerated at all quarters, perhaps by the Republican Party itself, for exploiting the memories of the dead and perhaps even for trying to evoke that pain again. If you reacted to that videotape the way I did, I apologize. It is a subject of great pain for many of us still and was probably not appropriate to be shown. We’ll continue in a moment.”
The statement was widely praised by liberal bloggers and commentators, and widely criticized by conservatives.
Olbermann told The New York Times today that that moment — and the perception that he is “not utterly neutral” — reignited the debate about his role on political nights.
“I found it ironic and instructive that I could have easily said exactly what I did say, exactly when I did say it, if I had been wearing a different hat, and nobody would have taken any issue,” he told the Times.
McCain, Obama Plan Joint Appearance at Ground Zero on 9/11
The Associated Press just reported that McCain and Obama will attend a ceremony at Ground Zero to mark the seventh anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks next Thursday in order “to honor the memory of each and every American who died” in the 2001 attacks.
The campaigns have agreed to suspend television advertising critical of each other on Sept. 11, and McCain has announced its campaign will air no ads at all that day.
“All of us came together on 9/11 — not as Democrats or Republicans — but as Americans,” they said. “We were united as one American family. On Thursday, we will put aside politics and come together to renew that unity,” a joint statement said.
Here is the joint statement:
“On September 11, 2008, we will join together to mark the seventh anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks at Ground Zero.
“All of us came together on 9/11 — not as Democrats or Republicans — but as Americans. In smoke-filled corridors and on the steps of the Capitol; at blood banks and at vigils — we were united as one American family. On Thursday, we will put aside politics and come together to renew that unity, to honor the memory of each and every American who died, and to grieve with the families and friends who lost loved ones. We will also give thanks for the firefighters, police and emergency responders who set a heroic example of selfless service, and for the men and women who serve today in defense of the freedom and security that came under attack in New York City, at the Pentagon and in Shanksville, Pa.”
McCain, Obama Plan Joint Appearance at Ground Zero on 9/11
The Associated Press just reported that McCain and Obama will attend a ceremony at Ground Zero to mark the seventh anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks next Thursday in order “to honor the memory of each and every American who died” in the 2001 attacks.
The campaigns have agreed to suspend television advertising critical of each other on Sept. 11, and McCain has announced its campaign will air no ads at all that day.
“All of us came together on 9/11 — not as Democrats or Republicans — but as Americans,” they said. “We were united as one American family. On Thursday, we will put aside politics and come together to renew that unity,” a joint statement said.
Here is the joint statement:
“On September 11, 2008, we will join together to mark the seventh anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks at Ground Zero.
“All of us came together on 9/11 — not as Democrats or Republicans — but as Americans. In smoke-filled corridors and on the steps of the Capitol; at blood banks and at vigils — we were united as one American family. On Thursday, we will put aside politics and come together to renew that unity, to honor the memory of each and every American who died, and to grieve with the families and friends who lost loved ones. We will also give thanks for the firefighters, police and emergency responders who set a heroic example of selfless service, and for the men and women who serve today in defense of the freedom and security that came under attack in New York City, at the Pentagon and in Shanksville, Pa.”
Olbermann’s Attack on 9/11 Memorial at RNC
A memorial tribute was played to the victims of 9/11 last night at the Republican Convention. Keith Olbermann found it disturbing.
“It is a subject of great pain for many of us still and was probably not appropriate to be shown,” he said. Yes Keith, it was graphic, and it did stir up memories. But while those memories that are painful, they should never be forgotten. There are some events that come — thankfully once a generation — that define us as a nation. In these events, we honor the dead not just because they died, but because of their motivation, patriotism and love of country. Such is the case with the defenders of the Alamo; or the hundreds of thousands whose blood was spilled by the hand of brothers at Gettysburg, Manassas, and Antietam; or the so many young servicemen killed in a surprise attack at Pearl Harbor. The list goes on and on. But in every waking moment, we must be grateful for their ultimate sacrifice.
Yes Keith, being reminded of the sacrifices of Sept. 11th is painful. But closing our eyes to what happened on that day would be more painful. If we forgot those heroes, we would be guilty of wasting their bravery. The firefighters who climbed those stairwells, or the passengers who fought back on a jet over Pennsylvania, as well as the other 3,000 heroes deserved to be remembered. Tributes to those heroes are never out of place, and last night’s video was done in good taste. There was no politics involved. It would have been appropriate to run the same video at the DNC in Denver. Not once was McCain’s name used, nor was there a push to vote Republican. It’s too bad you feel shame in their tribute, because most Americans are proud of them.
And yes, I knew two victims of that day as well. I will never forget them, neither should anyone else.
UPDATE, 12:25 p.m. Sept. 5: The Olbermann Watch blog makes a point worth reinforcing. Last night’s commentary came from the same “neutral news anchor” who repeatedly screamed for media access to take pictures of our military heores’ flag-draped coffins coming home from Iraq, despite family wishes to the contrary.
… Olbermann, who remains “down the middle” when he’s anchoring news events, did raise crocodile tears over this horrible “exploitation” of the dead. Mind you this is the same Herr Olbermann who repeatedly made an issue of getting public photos of flag-draped coffins, regardless of the wishes of the families. That’s not exploitation, oh no. But remember, hypocrisy is coin of the realm on OlbyPlanet.
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