(finally got caught up after not looking at the forum since the 10th!)

> At least in 1862 we knew who we were fighting. We were fighting each other, but the lines were clearly drawn on both sides, and each side knew exactly who to shoot at. Today, we know only bits and pieces of who *might* be involved, although we have firm suspicions. The cowards who perpetrated this heinous crime either died for their cause or hide now in their holes while we are left to diligently search for them and expose them to the light of day.
>
> To not even stand up and claim responsibility for such an act is not only cowardly beyond comprehension but in my eyes does an extreme disservice to their "cause". If you would not stand up and state clearly why you commited such an act, your reasons must not be very good, even to you, it would seem.
>
> We are at war with an enemy we can't see, can't easily identify when we DO see them, and who are willing to die for whatever it is they are fighting for.

Which is one of the top five reasons why this attack was worse than Pearl Harbor. The top five list:

5. Symbols were destroyed in the recent attack.
4. In 1941, we knew the Japanese were going to attack on December 7. In fact, we had requested that Japan commit the first overt act. (We just didn't know _where_ they were going to attack.)
3. At Pearl Harbor, we knew who we were fighting.
2. The recent attack killed civilians.
1. This attack killed more people than the attack on Pearl Harbor.

> We hear it blamed increasingly on militant Islamic fundamentalists. What kind of religion would sanction such things? I can only hope and believe that the "Islam" of these people equates more closely to the "Christianity" of Hitler and the KKK than it does to any true sense of what Islam is about.

You are correct, Dave, on that fact, and I agree with Darien's post. The Old Farmer's Almanac points out that the holy books of every single religion contain a parallel to Christianity's Matthew 7:12. The Almanac also quotes each one of these parallels. The relevant quote in the Koran is "No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which he desires for himself." (The Old Farmer's Almanac is a very useful reference for a lot of information.)

> If they do, then they are ignorant of the entire history of this country. Americans are polarized politically, diverse in race, religion, and culture, fractured, in-fighting, and oftentimes brutal to one another. But if ever our safety, our soveriegnty, our freedom, or our way of life is threatened or attacked, we put aside all differences and stand together to face our common enemy, and we do not stand down until that enemy is rendered incapable of threatening us anymore.

Also, I'd like to point out that the U.S. has won every single war where any battles took place on U.S. soil. The Civil War, World War II, and the American Revolution come to mind, for example.

I don't see why the terrorists would have thought that statistically, we might lose this war.

OK, now for a few thoughts.

(I'd like to mention that this next rant, while based partially on Gordon Sinclair's famous essay, was actually forming in my head before I read that essay, and in fact started forming shortly after the USS Cole was attacked.)

Why is it that we're never thanked for what we've done? In World War II, we helped defeat Germany, and we almost single-handedly defeated Japan. Those two nations would otherwise have killed MANY millions of people. And in the Gulf War, we averted an almost-worldwide oil shortage by driving the Iraqis out of Kuwait. THIS is how the Middle East thanks us? WHY?

(this rant has ended.)

Also, I'd like to point out that my school put up two actual bulletin boards where students can post their thoughts. I've noticed the varying range of opinions... Some posted that they were sorry about the losses... Some posted to advocate a peaceful response... Some posted to advocate "nuking" the terrorists... And some posted Bible verses.

I've noticed that Ria, Nyperold, and Sosiqui's home pages, as well as the RinkWorks index page, have messages about the tragedy.

I'd also like to point out some people who were affected. Ria says on her home page that someone who went to her school was killed. One student at my school lost an aunt. On one of the other online forums I frequent, someone knew a girl who lost her mother; someone else's next-door neighbor lives in New Jersey and works/worked very close to the WTC (the neighbor had to bring some coworkers to her home that day); someone else works seven blocks from the WTC, and posted a detailed account of the collision and the resulting stampede. When I last checked on Thursday, two NY regulars had not been heard from. One of the two had met the seven-blocks-away guy in person, and the 7-blocks-away guy was going to stop at the other guy's workplace to make sure he was all right; however, in the confusion of the stampede, he ran past it.

This was the worst terrorist attack ever, smashing a record set in 1985; that year, a bomb on a Boeing 747 killed 329 people. The (possibly hundredfold) increase in the record was mind-boggling.

(another rant begins)

Also, why are people starting to spread misinformation? Shortly after this attack, an e-mail began circulating that said that Nostradamus predicted the attack. He didn't! Nostradamus never said "The third big war will begin when the big city is burning"! And spreading misinformation isn't going to help anything! Gimme a break.

(rant ends)

- Lucky Wizard