[PLUG-TALK] Where I was on 9/11/2001

[John Jason Jordan]

It was a Tuesday morning and I had just awakened. I leave the
television on all night and there was a news broadcast showing the
first tower with black smoke. I listened to the commentary and quickly
knew that a plane had crashed into it. My immediate thinking was that
some NYC air traffic controller was in really deep doo-doo for the
mistake of a lifetime. And a little later I watched the second plane
live as it crashed. And as things continued the news came that the
nation was locked down. I had class to teach at 1pm and another at 6pm,
so I called the school and discovered that everything had been
canceled. I watched the towers collapse on live TV.

Eventually I got up and went outside. Several neighbors were out as
well. While we talked I was struck by the the silence. No airplanes, no
traffic noise, nada.

Eventually I went back into the house and got on IRC chat. There was
little talk. Everyone worldwide seemed stunned.

In the ensuing weeks I watched Congress pass unbelievable laws that I
thought should be unconstitutional. I kept chanting to myself 'those
who would trade freedom for security deserve neither.' Yet, here we are.