This has been an extraordinarily eventful week. Katrina has brought echos of the trauma of 9/11, and the anniversary of 9/11 has brought another dimension to the response to Katrina.
Our Cotillion Ball members have covered many aspects of the week in thoughtful and evocative ways.
Sissy of Sisu exposes Hillary's "fake but accurate tears" over the fate of the pooooor black victims of Katrina.
Perish the thought that citizens in distress should rely on first responders, but at least her "recipe for disaster" is consistent with her own promise last year that "We're going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good," not to mention her husband's timeless "What if you spend YOUR money WRONG?"
Maxed Out Mama wants us to Please Think Hard about the political and organizational ramifications of government response to Katrina and how future response ought to be changed.
I want individuals to think about the legal and logistical issues involved in the president deciding, on his own behalf, that the feds should take over an entire relief effort instead of aiding a state-run effort. Our entire national response plan basically relies on the principle that the locals will be in control and that the federal government will respond to their requests for aid. Do we want to change that? I think not, but I am sure it will be proposed in Congress.
Stacy, who is Not A Desperate Housewife, discusses how some of the larger contentions play themselves out in even the smallest details of our daily lives.
Observation: I'm assuming that this is not just a Colorado thing, but, I've noticed that those who chose to place a Bush/Cheney or the 'W' sticker on their car, have done just that, just that sticker. At least half of the cars I see with a Kerry/Edwards sticker are accompanied by another sticker spouting an insult towards the President or Republicans.
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Many Cotillion members chose to post remembrances of The Day When Everything Changed.
Emily of Portia Rediscovered remembers the day with the historic and evocative words of GWB.
"We will not tire, we will not falter, and we will not fail."
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Merri's Musings about that day are more personal.
As anyone would probably tell you, September 11, 2001 started out as any other day for me. It was a Tuesday and just two days after my son's fourth birthday. My daughter, born on May 1, 2001, was only slightly over 4 months old, and fussing for her morning bottle. ...
Little Miss Attila shares her personal memories and her steely resolve.
By day's end I was a different person than I had been when I woke up. As I lay down that night I mentally told Al Qaeda "You have no idea what you've unleashed."
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As affected as each and every American was, and continues to be to this day, by the events of 9/11, at times we still require insight into the lives of those even more directly affected than we. Right Thinking Girl provides that insight in a most personal way in her post titled, "Love in A Time of Danger."
The fight against terrorism isn't just happening in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other parts of the world. It's still happening here at home, in places like Virginia and New York City. It's being waged in the 3,000 families who aren't finished grieving over their loved ones and who will never be finished grieving. It's being waged every time a wife wakes up to the crying baby who will never know his father, and every time a man wakes up in a cold sweat dreaming that his wife jumped to avoid being burned alive. The war on terror isn't some make believe idea. It's real. And I say this as somebody who knows firsthand just how real it is.
After the thoughts, the remembrances, the feelings brought up by these 9/11 posts -- and by my own remembrances and experiences, I find that nothing clears the decks for action better than some well-directed anger. Who better to turn to for a shot of the energy that makes a difference than our own Beth and HER Vast Right Wing Conspiracy
I could feel that rage all over again, with my pulse racing and the bile rising inside. Bloodlust...I won’t get over it until they are defeated. Whatever it takes. Peace on OUR terms, not theirs.
Hoo Yah!
Please visit the Other Cotillion Ball Hostesses, TFS Magnum, Portia Rediscovered and Mary Katherine Ham at Townhall C-log to find more . . .
Cross-posted on e-Claire
Posted by Claire at September 13, 2005 01:16 AM