Chloe did a beautiful 9-11 tribute over at the Niblets blog, and I’d like to build on it with my own observations. Today, it’s hard to believe it’s been 13 years since the world changed, and she’s absolutely right about one thing: we can never go back. I can’t imagine getting on a flight now without being scanned down to my bones (and my luggage being scanned to the atomic level), and it’s hard to remember that the Department of Homeland Security didn’t exist once upon a time.
It brings up an interesting question that’s been posed over and over in the passing years: are we sacrificing our freedom for increased security? Many believe we are, and that it’s shifting us to a socialist state. We’ve heard plenty of screaming over the years about the NSA and other instances of the government snooping into our private affairs, which brings up the question of whether we’d rather be free or secure. And then again, if you’re doing what’s right, does it matter? After all, if you have nothing to hide, then why does it matter if the NSA knows where you are, who you’re talking, texting, and emailing to, and what you had for lunch today? I guess the real question is our right to privacy. And again, we enter the freedom/security loop. Is there an end? Is there an answer? I don’t know.
The escalating tensions in the east with ISIS now are actually a factor I’m figuring into the draft of the science fiction trilogy I’m writing. There’s no doubt that terrorism is still a huge issue in the world today, and it’s impacting world events and even history itself. I feel our grandparents generation, “the greatest generation,” are turning in their graves right now. They fought and worked so hard to rid the world of the evils of Nazi’s and the threats of dictatorships only to have radical terrorists rise to plague future generations. It just goes to prove that it’s always something. Marvel might have it right after all. Remember what Hydra said about “cut off one head, and two more rise?” That seems to be the truth. Fiction and reality have uncanny parallels. Then again, reality influences fiction, so there you have the answer to that riddle.
I think this is a testament to the fact that future generations will fully realize that 9-11 changed the world as we know it. They may not have the memories or personal connections and recollections of exactly how these changes happened. Heck, those of us that have experienced it probably find ourselves hard pressed to articulate it ourselves, because many of the changes are felt rather than seen. But we know it’s there, and they will realize it too, even if they weren’t here to experience it. It’s like we know Pearl Harbor changed the world, even though many of us weren’t around then. At least better media coverage will give future generations something more to see from the day that changed the world in the twenty-first century.
The truth is that we’re still seeking that balance between freedom and security, and the explosive advances in technology in the past 13 years haven’t made it any easier. Every step forward is one more thing we have to consider that can be misused by those that wish to do us harm. It’s a shame that we have to live in such a state of partial paranoia – but then again, as it ever been any other way? There were many decades between Pearl Harbor and 9-11, which no doubt led to some complacency. How do you strike the balance? I’m not sure there is any one answer, or what direction this whole debate is taking us as a nation, a society, and a world in. 13 years later, and the story is still unfolding in many ways. It’s something to think about.
That’s my meditation on the day. I offer a prayer for those lost on 9-11, their families and friends, and all affected by the terrible events of that day. Wait, that means all of us, because in one way or another, we were all affected. Well, here’s a pray for us all!
That’s all today. Take care. Have a happy Friday tomorrow and a fantastic weekend.
Bye!
It brings up an interesting question that’s been posed over and over in the passing years: are we sacrificing our freedom for increased security? Many believe we are, and that it’s shifting us to a socialist state. We’ve heard plenty of screaming over the years about the NSA and other instances of the government snooping into our private affairs, which brings up the question of whether we’d rather be free or secure. And then again, if you’re doing what’s right, does it matter? After all, if you have nothing to hide, then why does it matter if the NSA knows where you are, who you’re talking, texting, and emailing to, and what you had for lunch today? I guess the real question is our right to privacy. And again, we enter the freedom/security loop. Is there an end? Is there an answer? I don’t know.
The escalating tensions in the east with ISIS now are actually a factor I’m figuring into the draft of the science fiction trilogy I’m writing. There’s no doubt that terrorism is still a huge issue in the world today, and it’s impacting world events and even history itself. I feel our grandparents generation, “the greatest generation,” are turning in their graves right now. They fought and worked so hard to rid the world of the evils of Nazi’s and the threats of dictatorships only to have radical terrorists rise to plague future generations. It just goes to prove that it’s always something. Marvel might have it right after all. Remember what Hydra said about “cut off one head, and two more rise?” That seems to be the truth. Fiction and reality have uncanny parallels. Then again, reality influences fiction, so there you have the answer to that riddle.
I think this is a testament to the fact that future generations will fully realize that 9-11 changed the world as we know it. They may not have the memories or personal connections and recollections of exactly how these changes happened. Heck, those of us that have experienced it probably find ourselves hard pressed to articulate it ourselves, because many of the changes are felt rather than seen. But we know it’s there, and they will realize it too, even if they weren’t here to experience it. It’s like we know Pearl Harbor changed the world, even though many of us weren’t around then. At least better media coverage will give future generations something more to see from the day that changed the world in the twenty-first century.
The truth is that we’re still seeking that balance between freedom and security, and the explosive advances in technology in the past 13 years haven’t made it any easier. Every step forward is one more thing we have to consider that can be misused by those that wish to do us harm. It’s a shame that we have to live in such a state of partial paranoia – but then again, as it ever been any other way? There were many decades between Pearl Harbor and 9-11, which no doubt led to some complacency. How do you strike the balance? I’m not sure there is any one answer, or what direction this whole debate is taking us as a nation, a society, and a world in. 13 years later, and the story is still unfolding in many ways. It’s something to think about.
That’s my meditation on the day. I offer a prayer for those lost on 9-11, their families and friends, and all affected by the terrible events of that day. Wait, that means all of us, because in one way or another, we were all affected. Well, here’s a pray for us all!
That’s all today. Take care. Have a happy Friday tomorrow and a fantastic weekend.
Bye!
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