To the Editor:
Re “My Dad Died on Flight 93. The Nation Rallied,” by Charlie Greene (Opinion guest essay, Sept. 11):
Thank you to Mr. Greene, and to his younger sister, Jody, for their efforts to remember their father and the brave passengers of United Airlines Flight 93, whose lives tragically ended on a field in Shanksville, Pa., on Sept. 11, 2001.
I find it sadly fitting that their final resting place is an afternoon’s drive from Gettysburg. I hope everyone visits the memorials at least once.
Those who follow the broad events of that fateful day know that U.S. military jets were scrambled but were too late to save the twin towers and the Pentagon. Our nation was terribly naïve and unprepared for domestic warlike assaults.
Only some of these jets carried ammunition. Pilots flying the others knew they had to take out terrorist-controlled passenger jets by crashing into them — giving their own lives for the mission, the ultimate sacrifice. This is the stuff of heroes, not what’s popularized by boasting, bloviating politicians, or by simple tropes or the reports of a frenzied media.
Heroes rise to a challenge by selflessly doing what is innately and definitively human. Their actions remind us that we are part of a continuum based on teamwork, something essential to our survival as a species.
As Mr. Greene notes, we are all neighbors in this great country, and it is time we start caring more about each other than about politics. We must help each other to live and prosper in this dangerous, mixed-up world.
We will not survive the long term by abandoning our greatest attributes and dreams. Have we truly forgotten the sacred meaning of our nation’s motto: E pluribus unum, “out of many, one”?
Stephen Cipot New Hyde Park, N.Y.
To the Editor:
While I appreciate the beautiful words set forth by Charlie Greene in loving memory of his lost father, I do not share his idealized recollection of America in response to the tragedy of 9/11.
This nation was fractured before that date, in what we now know to be the early years of the great divide that is this country today. And I distinctly remember feeling then that the unity we exhibited in the terrible and terrifying days after the planes went down was but a mirage. There was simply too great a distance between us, even a quarter of a century ago, to be overcome.
I apologize for my cynicism and wish I could envision a reconciliation of sorts in 2026. But prayers and hopes won’t bridge the chasm that separates us. And even though, for a moment or two, memories of 9/11 will soften our animosities in our collective sorrow, reality will again intercede.
It is a difficult day for all of us, but tomorrow we will be once more staring at each other with animosity, not understanding, in our eyes.
Robert S. Nussbaum Fort Lee, N.J.
Trump’s Payout Ploy
To the Editor:
Re “Pleading for Votes, Trump Tries a New Spin on an Old Promise: Free Money,” by Katie Rogers (Political Memo, nytimes.com, Sept. 10):
President Trump’s ludicrous promise to give every American adult $5,000 if Republicans retain control of Congress in the midterms should not be dismissed as good old campaign rhetoric. His intent was clear: Persuade Americans to vote Republican by promising a government check.
The criminal law question is a close one, putting aside the broad grant of immunity conferred on President Trump (and other presidents) by the Supreme Court. Federal criminal statutes prohibit offering something of value for someone’s vote and promising a federally provided benefit for party support. The offense is completed by the offer and promise; no payment is actually required.
But the ethical issue is much clearer: The president has proposed using more than $1.3 trillion of public money as a partisan electoral inducement. Is this anything other than unmistakable evidence of political desperation?
Mark S. Arisohn Tuckahoe, N.Y. The writer is a lawyer.
To the Editor:
Donald Trump can keep his $5,000 bribe. We will keep our democracy.
Bob Bascelli Seaford, N.Y.
The Reality Map
To the Editor:
Re “U.N. Approves Larger Africa for World Map” (news article, Sept. 7):
The U.S. vote against the Equal Earth map at the United Nations is further evidence that the Trump administration views reality as an “ideological agenda.”
Kersti Yllo Providence, R.I.
The post Remembering 9/11, and What Unites Us appeared first on New York Times.
