I don't want to post a "Never Forget" bulletin and feed into the emotional pandering that seems to happen this time every year. But I do find it healthy to reflect on then and now.
Let's start with the obvious. Where was I? In the middle of my Intro to Criminal Justice class at UNT, Sophomore year. It was a huge class, and I think half of us ended up graduating together with CJ degrees three years later. We had a guy in the class who worked for American Airlines. He stands up, and tells everyone he's got to leave. "A plane just hit the World Trade Center." Sure it seemed odd, but he left and we finished class. When we got out, everyone was watching the TV's posted around campus, and it was only then that we understood what had really happened.
I met my friend Sara at our smoking spot, called my boyfriend, told him we were going to war, and left school, since everything was shutting down. We jumped in her car, put the top down and just drove around for most of the day. We listened to talk radio, since there was no music playing that day. We talked about how weird it was to not see planes in the sky. We debated, both internally and with each other, what this meant for our liberal political views.
Now, six years later, I think we know the answer. It meant that little would change. We were suspicious and untrusting of our government then, and we still are. We supported our soldiers then, and we still do. What are the implications? I don't know. I don't want to think an event like that would have no impact whatsoever. But I would want to believe that people now think more for themselves than they did before.
But that's just me.
