Originally Posted By: Cauldronborn
Dagny, don't be to sure about how ten year olds remember 9/11. I was twelve years old myself when it happend and I'm British too. But I can remeber watching the footage of the first plane going in and seeing the second plane going in live, those images will forever remain clear to me as I realized just what had happened and the likely death toll. I think this further emphasizes your point on persective changing how generations are viewed and view themselves



I don't presume to know how anyone remembers anything but this thread is about generalizing and 20 year olds, generally-speaking (especially those who read news reports), have a different take on things than 10 year olds.

Those of us who were in DC and NYC that day were having a different experience than those who weren't. Those who were Americans were having a different experience than those who are not. One thing just about everyone who was a sentient being and had a TV on that day has in common is that they will never forget where they were when it happened.

(BTW, among the most vivid and heartwarming memories for me of that time was the outpouring of concern and support in England, including the St. Paul's service.)

http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/food_travel_uk/80132

http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=1960

A friend who was born in 1951 recently toured the Texas School Book Depository and Dealey Plaza in Dallas (site of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963). She said it was striking how people of different ages responded to the museum tour. Older people of many nationalities were visibly moved, younger people were not. It was surprisingly emotional for my friend.

Which goes back to your point. She was just 12 and remembers the assassination vividly. She also was among the millions who watched the subsequent live-on-TV assassination of the assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald. She has said it was a terrifying time to live through, at least for her.

My parents and grandparents often spoke of the tension during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. They lived in Los Angeles and said the groceries were cleaned out because there was widespread concern that we were on the precipice of nuclear war.

I've seen the black-and-white broadcasts of President Kennedy's national address during that crisis but don't presume to know what it must have been like to be a parent with small kids watching that unfold. I hope never to watch a president in the future make such an announcement. Doubtful I'd ever forget it!