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May 22, 2012
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May 21, 2012
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Chris Farrell : Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
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Guy Jackson : Victim's father regrets death of Lockerbie bomber
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May 18, 2012
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Mary Pickett, M.D.: Ask the Harvard Experts: Don't be forced into gluten-free lifestyle based merely on a doctor's false-positive test
The Kosher Gourmet by Carolyn Malcoun: DIY healthy lunchbox treats: HOMEMADE FRUIT BARS for kids and brown-bagging adults alike
May 17, 2012
Warren Richey: Teacher fired for being unwed and pregnant can sue religious school, court rules
Josh Mitnick: Netanyahu's 'centrist' coalition is already proving it's anything but
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The Kosher Gourmet by Faith Duran : Cheesy Potato Breakfast Casserole with Cheddar and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
May 16, 2012
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The Kosher Gourmet by Joyce White : GOODNESS GRACIOUS: GREENS! 4 winning recipes that are no longer just for down-home folks (Includes expert tips & techniques)
May 15, 2012
Kristen Chick: Obama administration resumes arms sales to Bahrain despite serious unresolved human rights issues. Activists feel abandoned
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Kathy Kristof: Our Practical Investor Fights Inflation with These 6 Investments
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May 14, 2012
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Harvard Health Letters: Heart disease and dementia
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: MANGO COCONUT OAT MORNING MUFFINS are a bright but hearty delight
May 11, 2012
Jessica L. Anderson: Get the Best Deal on a Used Car
Jett Stone: Forget face-lifts and fake knees. Scientists have seen the fountain of youth --- and it's broccoli
The Kosher Gourmet by Chef Mario Batali: The famed chef's vegetable dish that tastes true to the season: FAVAS AND SUGAR SNAP PEAS WITH POTATOES AND TARRAGON
May 10, 2012
Sergei L. Loiko: Putin sends warning to U.S., NATO in Victory Day speech at Red Square
Mary Rourke: How being a 'mentch' got Vidal Sasoon his start and fighting in Israel's War of Independence provided him with confidence and a strong sense of his own identity
Jeff Bertolucci: Get Home Phone Service for Less Than $10 a Month
The Kosher Gourmet by Betty Rosbottom: Gleaming with its golden, crimson, and snowy white hues, this silken smooth and creamy STRAWBERRY ORANGE TRIFLE looks impressive, but is easy to prepare
May 9, 2012
Sharon Palmer, R.D. How you can reduce your risk -- or delay -- chronic diseases associated with aging
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Jewish World Review
April 28, 2006
/ 30 Nissan, 5766
United 93 Sept. 11 unvarnished
By
Rich Lowry
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Into a culture that has difficulty acknowledging the frank evil of our enemies and creating heroes whom we all can admire comes the extraordinary film "United 93." It is the unvarnished story of the morning of Sept. 11 and the struggle that ultimately drove hijacked Flight 93 into the ground in Shanksville, Pa., at 580 mph.
"United 93" adds no feel-good touches to its narrative, and within the bounds of taste (we see no bodies falling from the towers, for instance) is unsparing in relaying the awful reality of that day. That any controversy at all has adhered to the film its promotional trailer was pulled from one Manhattan theater and prompted complaints at others is as "disturbing" as some squeamish moviegoers have said the "United 93" preview was.
"Disturbing" is an odd complaint to make against such a movie. On Sept. 11, a group of young fanatical men caught us collectively napping; turned our high technology against us by hijacking our jetliners; stabbed crew and passengers aboard those planes; and plowed them into prominent symbols of our commerce and power in the most spectacularly savage terrorist attack the world has ever seen.
By any definition, that is disturbing. A movie about those events that doesn't create a pit of fear, anger and grief in your stomach is either poorly executed or detached from reality. "United 93" is neither. Some people will naturally prefer lighter fare at the multiplex, but the resistance in our culture to grappling frontally with that day news outlets have an informal ban on showing the plane striking the World Trade Center's south tower has a whiff of escapism. To paraphrase the slogan from the horror movie "The Fly," the message of Sept. 11 is, "Be disturbed, be very disturbed." We turn from it at our peril.
A related complaint against "United 93" is that it is "too soon" for the movie. But we are headed toward the fifth anniversary of the attacks. We could be losing a major battle in the War on Terror in Iraq and seeing a flagging of resolve in the war generally, yet some people think we can't yet be reminded what started the whole thing: It's never too early to be defeated, but always too soon to recall the brutality of our attackers.
Memory is a key element of national identity, and flinching from a full and true memory of 9/11 risks distorting ours. Of course, we remember the victims. But it is just as important to remember the perpetrators and their nature. In the wake of Sept. 11, the makers of the movie "The Sum of All Fears" famously changed the film's terrorists from Muslims to white supremacists. There is obviously no such airbrushing in "United 93." The film opens with the sound of the Muslim prayers of the hijackers in Arabic, as the camera pans over the streets of Manhattan. It's hard to get more stark, or chilling, than that.
It's also essential that we remember ourselves not just as victims on that day remember not just what was sad, but what was inspiring. The passengers of Flight 93 were the first Americans to fight back. "United 93" wisely avoids focusing too exclusively on any of the individual passengers. Instead, they are presented as an ensemble exemplifying many of the virtues of the American character: a great improvisational intelligence, as they quickly understand and cope with the radically new, horrifying circumstances they are presented with; an extraordinary civic facility, demonstrated by their ability to formulate rapidly a plan of action among themselves; and a fierceness when provoked. In preparation for the assault on the terrorists, one passenger tells a flight attendant: "Get every weapon you can find. We need weapons."
The heroism of those passengers is now forever part of our story as a nation. It's not too soon for a major Hollywood film that portrays it brilliantly. It's about time.
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© 2006 King Features Syndicate
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