PISSING VINEGAR Vol. 4: Black Tuesday
Written September 12, 2001

This isn't going to be your typical rant.

As a matter of fact, it may turn out not to be a rant at all. I just felt the need to express my feelings and opinions in the wake of the disasters which occurred in the United States on Tuesday, September 11 (or, 9/11... coincidence?).

I would be remissed at this time if I did not thank my lucky stars, or whatever divine being (if such a being exists), or who/whatever's in charge of us that I am alive on this day, and that no one close to me has perished in these horrible tragedies. It is an incredibly simple act to take the air we breathe, the food we eat, and the heart that beats in our chest for granted, and this person has inherited a new appreciation for life. And for that I am grateful. However, the price paid for such a revelation is too high to even begin to fathom at this moment.

Watching the endless barrage of developments unfold before me yesterday, I was (as I suspect most people were) more shocked by each update. The first crash. Then a second. Then the sheer terror of those 110-storey buildings collapsing. A third crash. Then a fourth. And the stories. Couples holding hands, and jumping out of the windows of the World Trade Centre. The ominous reports of frantic 911 calls made from the hijacked airplanes. Word that the death toll could be in the thousands. The sheer magnitude of what has transpired is, even now, unbelievable. It is as though the last two days have been a horrible, terrifying, depressing, and most of all, vivid nightmare. And the world so desperately wants to wake up, but for who knows how many poor innocent souls, there is no end to the sleep.

At this time, there's no point assigning blame to anyone. It's burden enough to deal with the facts. The thousands of people unaccounted for. The cold calculation with which these attacks were carried out. And... the near-certainty that the end result of it all will be even more fearful, even more saddening than what has already happened, as the world, for the first time in over 55 years, goes to war.

I shed a tear today for the families of the victims of this needless, cowardly, disgusting act. I hope that there are more survivors yet to be uncovered (though it seems like a bleak hope indeed). I shed a tear for those who lost their lives in the line of duty, selflessly coming to the aid of their fellow citizens. Your bravery in the face of unthinkable fear shall forever be admired and respected. And, lastly, I shed a tear for all humanity, in the hopes that somehow, we can find a way to move on from the horrors that we have all endured. And I sincerely hope that the futures of our children will not be cut short by the fires of war which, apparently, started burning yesterday.