Great post Daditude! This was an extremely important event that should NEVER be forgotten!

It’s amazing to me how little coverage this is getting this morning And Deblasio should be ashamed for largely cancelling or modifying the memorial ceremony in NYC. This event not only destroyed the lives of so many that day and changed the course of our history, but it also continues to ravage the health of so many responders in the NY/NJ area.

Yes thanks for starting this one up today as it should be in everyone's mind what occurred that day. Truly a remembrance for those lost and the sacrifice of our first responders to provide assistance on that awful day in our history.

Maybe it's because of where I live, but it's getting TONS of coverage here.

I lived in Missouri on 9/11, but moved to DC soon afterwards, and now work, let's say "real close" to the crash site. It is a haunting reminder every single day. I truly believe if more people could see with their own eyes the destruction, and feel the pain walking through that hallway, that Americans wouldn't argue so much, that we would work together to rebuild, and try a LOT harder to understand each other. I don't mean to diverge into politics, and I recognize that Pinside isn't a US-exclusive site, so I'll just say that for me, as an American: thousands, THOUSANDS of our compatriots died that day and deserve to be remembered by their fellow countrymen. We should never let this happen again in this, or any other country.

I just lowered my flag to half mast for the day in honor of those we lost.

The other day I walked over to chat with a neighbor a few houses up and across the street. There was another neighbor in adjoining driveway that I hadn't met before, so I introduced myself. When I did, he said, "Your the flag guy, right?" I said, "Yes, I am.", and I couldn't have been more proud to learn that I was known as the flag guy by my neighbors.

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I had already been in the Air Force for two years on 9/11. The base was locked down and we sheltered in place. President Bush gave his first speech at the operations building across the street from us. We watched Air Force One take off from the classroom. Once we were released, all of us checked our cars for bombs.

Once I got to my squadron, I got checked out to lead a formation. My next flight was to a deployed location. The flight after that was south of the Shahi-Kot Valley in Afghanistan, my first combat sortie.

There are plenty of currently serving, separated or retired military members on this forum as well as first responders who were directly involved in rescue, recovery, clean-up and subsequent actions. Hats off to them on this day. May we never forget.

Remember after the first one hit all the news heads were reporting about this terrible accident...then that second plane came into frame

“Well folks it appears we’re under attack”

I was on the west coast at the time working for a company with HQ in NY. I'd even been there twice that year and once even stood and looked up at one of the towers. The story of the first plane hitting was all over the news and I recall thinking how the hell do you fly into the WTC, it's huge. Of course that was before the second plane hit.
I am getting chills recalling seeing that live on TV.

I imagine that is how many older Americans feel when 7 December comes around. May we never forget either of these attacks.

Thanks to those who served, to those who paid the ultimate price and to those who have yet to serve.

I won't forget. My wife calls me and in broken English told me to turn on the TV. Something terrible happened.

I turned on the TV, just in time to see the second plane hit.

The grandfather of a friend of mine worked at a newsstand in the shadow of one of the towers. It took a few days to find out he was safe.

An acquaintance had a sister living in NYC. I called to see if her sister was okay. She was. I also learned she had a niece that worked in one of the towers. The niece was on vacation that week. Saved her life, her whole company and employees took a direct hit and all were gone.

A poster here on Pinside I know, I won't mention name, this is a hard day for some people. Worked in the path of a direct hit in one of the towers. This person was hungry and went to the bottom floors to get something to eat. Right after a plane hit and incinerated his coworkers and friends.

I always think of the police, firemen, and EMS workers that perished in the towers try to save others. Bless them and may their families find peace.

LTG

I often think about that. December 7th people sat by their radios all day hoping for news, any news. 9/11 we were watching it unfold on TV as it happened.

LTG

I was the flag guy in my old neighborhood. I do not think I can have a flag pole in my new neighborhood, but will have a house mount or something for sure.

Thank you sir!

Maybe because the only people that dont want to hear about it and be reminded are the ones who actually lived through it in NYC?

I lived there and I know I dont need the all day coverage... plus so much of it is like "news entertainment" with the history channels 50 shows about it.

To me its like if your wife died 20 years ago and then for the rest of your life every year on the day everyone you knew called you up and says hey you remember the day your wife died?? Just wanted to remind you so you think about that all day.

Well, that's another story. I was the first to have one in the neighborhood, then I received a nice letter from the HOA stating that I couldn't. Went back and forth for a couple of weeks, and eventually I won permission to keep it. Within the first few months I had several walkers (I'm in a cul-de-sac with a green belt and walkway at the end) ask me about it, then I slowly started noticing other flag poles pop up around the neighborhood. We also have several homeowners who have mounts on their porch pillars and other places, which is a great option for those who can't have or don't want a flag pole.

I concur with that sentiment. Personally, I make it a point every year on 9/11 to watch the specials and recollections of what happened on that day. The emotions still stir, and I never want the evil that occurred on that day to leave me. It is an annual reminder of to me of the importance and value of American freedom, and how much of the world wants to destroy it.

I still remember going to New York City in early December after 9/11. Smoke was still billowing from ground zero, thousands of makeshift memorials surrounded the perimeter, and all of the posters and signs asking if anyone has seen their missing loved ones was truly surreal. I cannot put into words the indelible thoughts and feelings imprinted on me due to that experience.

I grew up in NJ, just on the other side of the Hudson from NYC. I remember as a kid watching the towers being built. The NYC skyline still just looks "wrong" to me.

Yah... here is a pic from my apartment window probably winter 99 or 2000

eerie thing was that planes would fly past WTC all the time and due to perspective it always looked like they may be closer then they really were.

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My brother and dad are both pilots and were both flying that day. I remember frantically trying to find them to make sure they were ok..my dad was actually on his way back to St. Louis from NYC and was forced to land in Cleveland due to the airspace being shut down.

I work in the tower at the airport down the street from you. When I started there we still had a number of controllers who worked that day and saw the plane disappear behind the crystal city skyline. I remember one guy telling me how he was working in the radar room in the basement and how he felt the ground shake like an earthquake when the plane hit. Such a horrible day..

When I drove through town today, there was a firetruck parked in a parking lot on the side of the main street, its ladder was extended way up high over the center of the street, and there was a huge 50ft+ american flag hanging down as cars passed beneath it. It was quite a sight.

Personally, after the initial coverage in 2001, I couldn't bring myself to watch any of the additional coverage, interviews, etc until a few years ago. Even then only in limited doses.

The NY state museum has a 9/11 exhibit that I saw once; maybe 5 or so years after 9/11. Some of the items on display, like the wrecked and partially flattened firetruck, are tough to look at.

It sucked. I was a mile or so away and saw it all happen. I remember a middle-eastern guy crying laying on the ground saying "THIS IS NOT WHAT GOD WANTS!" I remember another guy mumbling to himself "well they got us good this time." Mostly lots of crying and screaming when the buildings came down.

Mostly I remember the months afterward when traveling people would go out of their way to be nice to me when they found I lived in NYC. It was really nice!

Through all the horror we watched that day it was truly beautiful to watch how fellow Americans Stood together United in the days Following the attacks.

Everybody just seemed to be a lot nicer, patient, supportive, compassionate, and understanding. It was the last time that I really felt that everyone was together on something. If there was one positive thing that happened following the tragic events of that day, it was that everyone pulled together, even if they weren't in or anywhere near NYC.

New Yorkers were great...

What I didnt like for years after was people coming in as tourists and asking "where is ground zero"??

I would always do my best to send them totally the wrong way.

Kinda gross to go on a tourist trip to a graveyard and buy a fuckin T-shirt... although of course now they have a museum.

They could easily research this themselves. And not bother people.

In Minnesota at the Congdon estate, the tour guides refuse to say which room Elizabeth was murdered in. At the time the newspapers had pictures. Easy to figure it out.

LTG : )

I hope most of them enjoyed their unwanted side trip to the river or Harlem.

My wife worked in one of the upper floors at Skyline back then. We hadn't met yet but it makes me wonder how different things might have been. I’m standing at my son’s hockey practice after getting mad at him he wasn’t getting it in gear enough and was going to be late. He was, but who cares? This is a reminder for me.

“This lady may have stumbled but she ain’t never fell”.

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I woke and was getting ready for work as a new outside sales rep at grainger Industrial supply.

I saw the news and then the second tower was hit live. I kissed my ex wife and went to work.

It was a strange day the sales calls I had were mostly useless. We sat staring at the screen instead.

My heart will burn from this event until the day I die. I gladly let it burn Me now.

I will never forget.

(I don’t mean to be so dramatic, but I fully do at the same time.)

At first I was scared, then I was angry, eventually I became informed.

Needless loss of life.

I'm happy there is no Dog & Pony Show today, it sickens me. The families deserve a true investigation of the events, instead, they are paraded.

3 steel framed towers fell that day, and one of them wasn't even hit by a plane. Cement buildings were pulverized before ever reaching the ground.

I remember seeing the smoke from miles away, and I remember how eerie the first planes back up seemed to me.

I knew a kid that lost his dad that day; I attended the funeral.

I spent some time today listening to architects and engineers speak of the day, , , I'll leave it at that.

Bless the fallen. They are with their God. Prayers and appreciation to first responders all the way to the people who helped make the new tower to show the world that the USA is not a bunch of pansies. To hell with the cowards that perpetrated this action.

Not sure how I missed this thread yesterday. 9/11 was one of the reasons when I had a chance, I reentered the military and deployed to Afghanistan, and have stayed in the National Guard ever since (although retirement is getting closer). The Guard was pretty active that day with Air Guard units scrambling their fighters and tankers in a round the clock effort to keep the sky safe, and later in support of first responders at each of the sites and at various critical infrastructure sites across the county. It changed a lot of things about our military including how we fight and changing the National Guard from a mainly strategic reserve to a fully operational, deploying force that does everything the active component does (plus the homeland protection mission). Most Guardsmen wouldn't have it any other way.

"Freedom is not Free."

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First, thank you for your service. Second, I only wish more of the young people in our country had a better grip on the idea that freedom is not free. They grew up, as I did, in peace time and have never known what real war is. This has its good points and bad!

We are still at war, the longest in our history. A 20 year old has never known a time we were not at war.
Well, let me correct that, they should never know a time, but sadly, that story has lost its glitter and the media has moved on.

Here's a photo of it that someone posted on facebook

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The NY State Museum just posted a tour of their 9/11 exhibit:

For some odd reason. I think of guardians of the galaxy. Bunch at odds people who fight themselves. The melting pot...America baby! Just don’t let us focus on you.

So Many memories of that day. The shock,..... the knowing everything was going to change, the memories of dining
at the top of the tower, joy riding in the elevator at 19, until the ticket booth opened. My friends that worked there, or in
the police and fire department, but mostly worried about my brother who worked in an out building that was half destroyed, wondering if he was alive. (Thankfully that evening,when we could get through, he called in sick that morning)
The Fear.......were we under attack?....The concern and empathy for all the people there....