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Jewish World Review
July 6, 2010
/ 25 Tamuz 5770
On taking back Sept. 11
By
Michael Smerconish
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
A man called my radio program last week with a dilemma. He's been charged with planning his company's end-of-summer barbecue. One date makes sense for all but seems to run afoul of sensibilities: Sept. 11. What to do?
"I actually was a rescue worker up there (at Ground Zero) for two weeks, and I don't have a problem with having" the barbecue on that date, the caller told me. "I said, 'If we don't have it, don't the terrorists still win, because they've taken that day from us?'"
The question, which caught me flat-footed, is interesting. Nine years removed from 9/11, is it appropriate to schedule celebratory events on that date?
I remember the issue being raised in 2004, the only other time the anniversary fell on a Saturday. Then, there were reports of wedding planners with little to plan and venues offering big discounts to those willing to tie the knot on a day when few others would.
An August 2004 story in the New York Times summed up the conundrum, noting that prospective brides and grooms "do not want grief-laden memories of loss and fear dimming the joy and hope that will come with saying 'I do,' running the gantlet of rice-throwing guests, and dancing their first dance as a married couple."
My unscientific survey indicates a change of attitude and an increase in festive activities this year, at least in Philadelphia. Last week, I called the Union League and was informed that its prestigious Lincoln Hall was booked for a big Sept. 11 wedding reception. So is the Franklin Institute's Franklin Hall, which typically hosts one wedding per weekend. The Pen Ryn Mansion in Bensalem has three events, including a wedding reception, booked for the date. And a friend of mine has received a save-the-date notice for a bat mitzvah then.
One argument is that to avoid the date is to hand the terrorists a victory. If Americans are in shutdown mode nearly a decade removed from that day we will never forget, then our lives have been disrupted, as the enemy hoped.
On the other hand, nearly 3,000 innocents lost their lives that day, and their families and friends are still among us. That causes some to question the propriety of having fun on the anniversary.
One caller said we shouldn't allow Sept. 11 to become less meaningful, like Memorial Day or (another noted) the Fourth of July. They seem to have a point. How many of us paused to remember the fallen, and who among us will contemplate the birth of our exceptional nation in the midst of the fireworks?
Left unaddressed, the descent into frivolity is bound to happen. My wife's birthday is Dec. 7. I dare say that her personal milestone is often the only reason that date has significance in our house.
So, as end-of-summer plans take shape, how should Americans treat the anniversary of a national tragedy?
With balance. The country needs to establish a national protocol for recognizing not only the 3,000 who were murdered on 9/11, but also the thousands of soldiers killed and wounded in the war against terrorists. The event shouldn't cast a shadow over the whole day, but Americans should be able to count on a solemn, serious commemoration year after year.
And whatever the ceremony is, it should not forgo the footage — horrific as it is — of the planes crashing into the Twin Towers. It's a much-needed reminder that is increasingly absent as the years progress.
At the same time, if we were to shut down for every anniversary of a significant loss of American lives, plenty of dates would be off limits.
Like Sept. 17. Does that ring a bell? On that date in 1862, the Battle of Antietam resulted in the deadliest single day in American military history, claiming 23,000 lives. Or April 19, the anniversary of the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Building in Oklahoma City. Or Feb. 26, the date of the first attack on the World Trade Center.
Unfortunately, there have been many such days in our nation's history.
On Sept. 11, 2010, resilience shouldn't mean a total retreat to normalcy. Nor, however, should it signal to those who wish us harm that the country's spirit is anything but strong.
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Previously:
06/29/10 Name elite corps to develop energy independence?
04/21/10 New account reinforces a serviceman's valor
03/11/10 Medical profession must police itself better
02/18/10 One-trick athletes
02/09/10 Active, retired law officers should be able to carry guns on planes to help stop terrorists
02/04/10 How to bring tech up to speed
01/28/10 Campaign donations must be fully and immediately disclosed online
01/07/10 The flying emperor still has no clothes, and no one is willing to say so
12/24/09 A law to mandate college football playoffs?
12/17/09 Cheney's abuse of freedom of speech
11/26/09 The true cost of freedom from anxiety
10/27/09 If GOP wants to win in 2012, it must reshape its primary process
10/08/09 It's time to get smarter on extended school day
09/03/09 What a summer of eulogizing flawed public figures reveals about society
08/12/09 It's time for cyclists and motorists to reconcile
08/05/09 Faces have changed, but vitriol remains
06/25/09 Fair comment or foul? Warm up the Muzzle Meter
06/08/09 Believability is key in crime-hoax villains
05/14/09 Did Hollywood inspire the meltdown men?
04/20/09 Let's give killers their due: Anonymity
03/12/09 Uninsured who can't afford medical care lose a lot more
02/06/09 My debate with Musharraf on hunt for bin Laden
01/29/09 Torture must remain an option
01/15/09 Making a case for suing Madoff
12/22/08 A difficult but rational chat about ‘plans’
12/17/08 Facebook epidemic: More than 120 million have joined, many too old for this nonsense
12/01/08 The high price of downsizing the news biz
11/14/08 Prescience on greed, arrogance of a system
09/29/08 Closer look at party lines
08/26/08 Obama's pick creates GOP opportunity
08/21/08 Fishing with the Angry Everyman
07/31/08 The perils of e-mail: Ponder, then click
05/22/08 Two very different sides of the Internet
02/12/08 Sublimely ridiculous suits
11/28/08 Cell phones cut out secondary circle of kinship
09/26/07 What do we owe those who have died in Iraq?
08/30/07 A Navy SEAL's gut-wrenching tale of survival
07/30/07 First it was a faux pas, now it's a new word
© 2008, The Philadelphia Inquirer Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services
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