God bless all the heros...


Polak aka Matt <---- very very very very sad today

Amen to that! Let us never forget the brave men and women who gave their lives to save others, AND the cowards who gave their lives to destroy others!!!

Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it!

My heart and prayers go out to all of the victims of the 9/11 attacks.

Our Team had the privilege of participating in the Maryland State Police Aviation Division’s celebration of 35 years of medivac operations and a 9/11 observance with a helicopter hoist demonstration and static display of our equipment. Our local paper covered the event and several others posted photos to the Watchdesk Web site.

Frederick News Post

Photos

Photos


Pete

I have some Mixed Feelings on how Well, -or Not Well, -that this Country is Remembering, -or Forgetting, -our 9 - 11 Lessons and Experience.

I know that "Getting Back to Normalcy" is a Big Part of the Picture and "Cure", -But we're now Long and Far Below that same level of Intensity and Dedication, -as we had about ourselves in those Immeadiate Post 9 - 11 Days, Weeks, and Months.

And after proclaiming so Loud and Long, -how we'll "Never Forget!". Well *Now* of course remains a part of that Never.

Where are we with it?! Where is our Sea of Flags?! That level of immeadiate Follow On Resolve, -was frankly over within 6 months. The Christmas Decorations went up, the Flags came Down, -Most Never to Return!

Those behind 9 - 11 Look and Laugh! On and at U.S.! Saying things like, -"I told you so!, -You Couldn't Last!",.....

I know that there's only so much Bad News that one can typically take, -but Come On, -Let's Fully Remember and Act like we *DO* Remember! In the way that we said we "Oh Sure Would"!

Some 3,000 of our Fellow Americans and Others, -Real People now, -which could easily have been either us or our Loved Ones, -died that day in the ways they did. And we're just gonna say, -"Oh!, -that was so Four Years Ago!"?

The 3rd and 4th Anniversary Commemorations were quite Tame and Tepid! That is *Not* how we're suspossed to Remember! That is *Not* the Picture of ourself that we should be putting forth to our Watching and Waiting Enemies.

Great where we *Do* Take Care of the Brass Tacks Business involved, -and otherwise Remember and Keep Up a Vigilance! We *Do* continue to do a Good Bit of that.

Concernable, Disturbing, and *Not* Great, -where we Don't! [color:"black"] [/color] [email]fordwillman[/email]

Scott,

During frist anniversary my friends who were in the WTC came outside when ceremonies were taking place at Ground Zero. I think maybe one person stopped. Everyone had something to do. And that was 4 years ago. Now nobody even remembers. When I got a 9/11 tattoo some people just had this "get over it" look. 9/11 became just another disturbance in normal life flow. I think that people from outside of the US care more about 9/11 than people inside. I give up. I'm going to do my part, work hard, save lives, wear my flag, display my pride and stand for what I believe in.

Amen! I Hear You! And etc!

*They* are the ones who are going to have some Real, Inerasable, Egg on their Faces! (To the Extent that they "Even Remember they've Forgotten"!), -when and/or if the next such Attack on U.S. Occurs. And Guys and Gals like you, -will be "Looking Good" again.

Hey!, -Keep On Keeping On like you're Doing!, -in this or any other Event! Just as you've just said! You've yet got Plenty of Friends / Supporters / and Rememberers among us! And at least some in the larger Outside World. Though as we both describe, -that latter may anymore be rather Hard to Find!

I mean not to sound as if I were on any undue rant, or sound any undue Sour Notes. But there is and now Long has been, -More than a little Too Much Forgetting, -and Not Enough Remembering, -Going On!

We *Are* Weak there! And our True Enemies behind 9 - 11 are in this area are Strong! We *Talk* "Never Forgetting". But *they're* the ones who *Actually* Never Forget! As Bad, Wrong, Evil and all as they otherwise are.

This kind of Display from our Side, -only lends them Heart and Encouragement! It that much More Encourages and Enlikens any further 9 - 11s.

Too Much Viewing and Re-Viewing of things like the Towers Collapse occurred in those immeadiate weeks and Months. Followed by Not Nearly Enough such Rememberances!, -in and throughout Most of these Four Years since!

My Post 9 - 11 Flag *Stayed* on my window, -since 9 - 11. (Until I moved about a year ago, -and wasn't sure how my new landlord would be about it). To paraphrase Barbara Mandrell, -You, I, and X number of other Americans and Westerners, -are now 9 -11 "Never Forgetters", -when such 9 -11 "Never Forgetting", -is No Longer always so "Cool"! But "Cool" and "Hip" is *Not* what our September 11th Lessons and Experience were and are All About!, - (*"If we Will Remember"*!)

Our "Spirit of 76" days Patriot Thomas Paine, -Spoke so Well of the "Sunshine Patriot"! And the "Rain Patriot"! Heck!, -Everybody and Anybody could be, -and often was, -a Sunshine Patriot!, -in those latter 2001 Weeks and Months! Not that we didn't realize the Gravity of it all! Far from it! But it *Wasn't* Hard to Put Up a Flag! And you *Didn't* Feel as if you were on some kind of a Lonely Walk!, -in doing so! Six Months on, however, -the Tables Returned and Reverted to Very Much a September 10th "Business as Usual"! It Remains No Time to be so September 10th! Nor to be only a Sunshine Patriot or Rememberer! It's "Rain Patriot" Time! What Part of the *Never* in "Never Forget", -Don't many of U.S. evidently Remember, Get, or Understand!? Though I Advocate and Welcome much Return to Normalcy, -We've got to do a Better Job of Ourselves!, -at *Remembering* and *"Never* Forgetting"!

Keep On as you're so Well Doing! As our Brit Friends and Brothers say, -"Carry On!".

And to many of the Rest of U.S., -as our British Friends in Freedom also say!, -"Get Crackin!". And as we ourselves may say of Ourselves, -"Get With It!", and "Get With the Program!" [color:"black"] [/color] [email]Polak187[/email]

I don't intend to be a wise guy here, but everybody who puts up a flag remembers 9/11, and everybody who doesn't has already forgotten? That is a pretty black & white way of looking at the world.

What does the simple act of flying a flag accomplish? I love this great country of ours, but I do not think that a magnetic sticker on my car is going to change anything (except make the magnet makers wealthy).

The true lesson in this is that America has enemies -- enemies who can operate without a regular standing army or national borders. This new enemy is more like a virus than a wolf. The lesson learned should be reflected in how we vote, and how we prepare our families.

Matt,

9/11 is something I will never forget. Nor will I forget the sacrifices made by so many brave people. Yours is a very honorable profession - don't let people's indifference to 9/11 get you down. You and your comrades rank very high on my list of important people. Stay stong and stay safe.

Thanks for your service.

Steve

I have given Thought to the point you make, -shortly after posting.

On that, my response is, -Sure, -our Vigilance and all involves Far More than only displaying Flags and such.

But a sufficiently Serious, Vigorous, Flag Flying practice, -*is* a major part of our Whole Resolve and Picture here. As in those immeadiate Days, Weeks, and Months following our 9 - 11 Experience. And "Not in a Shy Way!", -as Frank so well says.

We've got to *Both* Act, (All the various practical Nuts and Bolts of how we Defend ourself, -and come to Turn the Tables back around, -on this Very Real Enemy of ours), -and Show, (Outward Manifestations such as some Real Flag waving and Display), -Ourselves to be Really Sustained and Serious, -about this Mortal Struggle we now find ourselves to be in.

We've got to both Have, and Display, -such Seriousness and Resolve. Late 2001 type Flag Displays, -So Well fills this Bill!

We cannot have it both ways, -Both All Out Flying our Flag of Freedom!, -and Packing it in! We Cannot at one time, -Loudly Proclaim to "Never Forget!", -to then be followed by doing precisely such Forgetting!

Some day when or if this War is over, -having ended up in our Favor, -*Then* we can Pack such in! But *Not* yet or now, -I Haven't heard anything about this War on Terror / Fight for our Very National Survival, -being over yet. We're in it for the *Long* Term and Duration! Let's Carry Ourselves and Act, -as though we Know What those Words and Concepts, -Really Mean!

Flags are Far from the only Aspect or Component. And I Agree, -Not every Flag Waver is *With It*, on 9 - 11, -and Not every Non Flag Displayer is not With It. But a "No Shy Bones About It!" kind of Sustained Flag Display!, -the Sea of Flags as I call it, -IS such a Major and Important, -Component and Aspect!

"You Can't even Keep your Flags Up!", -our Quietly but Definitely in the Background Enemies say! "Your 'Never Forget"!, -Don't Make us Laugh!"

Such from U.S. demonstrates to they and all others who Watch, -Not our Serious Resolve and Staying Power! But rather our Shy, Short Sighted, Shallow, Softness and Weakness!

The Next Time they hear U.S. talking of "Never Forgetting!", -They may paraphrase a John McEnroe on U.S., -saying "You Can't be Serious!" / "Yeah!, -We've Heard this from you Before!..."

Should there ever be another 9 - 11 Scale Attack on U.S. again, -We'll all Rush to get our Flags Back Up again! Ther'll be all this Wonderful National Togetherness, once again! There'll also be all this Sanctimonious, Self Righteous Talk, once again. There'll be "Flagsigns" in windows once again, -saying "These Colors Don't Run!" (Only the *LastTime* we Did and Said that, -They Sure since have Up and Run Somewhere! And *Will*, -Sad to have to say, -Run Off somewhere once again! ) Ther'll be all this "We Will Never Forget!" Talk and Resolve once again!As Before, we may very well Sincerely Mean it! We may even be as much as 100 % in he Right.

But "Fool me Once, -Shame on you!, -Fool me Twice, -Shame on Me!" (That's U.S.!), -will be the Order of the Day! For they could then very well Remind U.S., -that we *Didn't* KEEP our Flags and Full Scale Resolve Up! -Back when they Heard that all Before!, from U.S.! And we *Won't* be able to Deny that they are Factually Right on that! Galling as that may be to Have to Admit! All this "We Will Never Forget!" talk!, -That's gonna Ring Mighty Dim and Hollow to them! as indeed it already has, -for most of these Past 4 years!

Weakening and Watering Down the Patriot Act, Softening Up too much to Civil Rights and Liberties, Ethnic Profiling, and "Be Nice at Guantanamo", -Actions and Concerns on our Part, -also Seriously Weakens and "Mushes Up" our Resolve! Before the Eyes of the Entire Watching and Waiting World! Flags again I'd Agree, -are *Not* the only Component!

The More we Weaken and Soften Up!, and otherwise Forget!, -the Greater and More Enticing is their Temptation!

We Cannot be Slipping, Dragging, Slow, or otherwise Asleep at the Wheel and Switch, -or Out to Lunch!, -on this one!

This "Never Forget!", -Put Up or Shut Up with it!, -my Fellow Americans!

A Strong and Steadfast Flag Display!, -while Far from our only Component, -of all that we Must Do!, -is such *a* Vital Component of this all!

Until we both Get and *KEEP* With our own Words, -They're gonna wonder how Resolved and Serious we Really Are! Or Are Not! We Risk *Having* the Egg they so are going to Call U.S. on!, -on our Faces! If we Keep on Saying one thing, -yet *Doing* Quite Another! On any Next Time, -as may ever come up. Our *Actions*, or Lack Thereof, -Speaks Louder than our Words! Volumes Louder!

Again, -"We could have Told you so!,-....You Couldn't Last!,-....You Can't even Keep your Flags Up!,-....Your Never Forget!,-....You Can't be Serious!,-....Don't Make us Laugh!,...." Akong with other such Inescapable "Shame on U.S.!", of Likes!

Other Vital Components and Aspects of our Effort and Resolve, -Yes!

A Strong, Steady, Sustained, "Not in a Shy Way!", and Steadfast, -Late 2001 Style Sea of Flags across our Land! This remains such a Vital Component and Aspect, -toward displaying our Resolve, Lasting and Staying Power, and Real Seriousness, -as well! we should Show of Ourselves a Resounding Yes there as well! [color:"black"] [/color] [email]harrkev[/email]

I Echo what stevez says to you in reply.

A good number of years ago, it's occurred to me, -how Doctors, Nurses, Paramedics, EMTs, Chopper Pilots and Ambulance Drivers, Firemen, Search and Rescue, and other Medical Personnell and First Responders, -Save Lives every day! And in a sense, -are as Worthy of our Appreciation, -as any Scout in "Boy's Life"'s "A True Story of Scouts in Action".

Yet it's "All in a Day's Work"! All in the Training, Professionalism, and other Expectations. That is all duly Well and Good. (And I'm aware that there are serious Lapses and Shortcomings that occur in our Hospitals and Medical System, -as well!).

But Fact remains that so many of you Do Save Lives!, -and otherwise alleviate Injury and Suffering, -every day!

I Think and Reflect on this from time to time.

As such, -I Extend a Real Appreciation and Thank You!, -to you and all the others like you!, -out there!

Again, -Carry On!, -and Keep On Keeping On! [color:"black"] [/color] [email]Polak187[/email]