9/11-long post

Does everyone remember what they were doing seven years ago today? I actually just found my journal entry from 9/13. It says:

"Two days ago on Sept. 11 (9/11), two planes crashed into the towers of the World Trade Center, another crashed into the Pentagon, and a fourth in Pennsylvania. I had just gotten out of the shower when I came into my room and heard the news on the radio. At first I thought it was a joke. Lilian was walking by and I asked her if she had heard about this. Then we went in and turned on the news. We couldn't believe it. Before long both towers had collapsed. Witnesses said they saw people jumping out of the windows so they wouldn't be burned alive. There was actual footage of the second plane crashing in to the building. It didn't seem real-it was like a movie or something. All of us sat around watching for a while, then I had to go to class. When I got there my professor announced that class was cancelled. As I was walking home I saw a sign that said the devotional was cancelled and instead they were holding a prayer meeting. For the rest of the day until my next class in late afternoon, I was glued to the t.v. I don't remember what happened on what day, but a lot has happened. Footage of the first plane came out, and along with the other footage, has been played over and over again. All airports were shut down and flights that were already in the air had to land at the nearest airport. A building next to the WTC also collapsed and another is near collapsing right now. The death toll for the Pentagon is about 190. The total for the crashes should be about 5000. That's about twice the death toll of Pearl Harbor, which is what this is being compared to. It's being called an act of war. Some people have been rescued from the WTC rubbnle. Right now they can hear several people tapping from under the debris, but it's so unstable they don't know if it will cave in before they can get to the people. They've called in people to tunnel from below to see if that works any better. The black box from the PA crash has been found. the cockpit from one of the WTC planes has been found with a body inside-possibly that of one of the terrorists. Osama bin Laden is the prime suspect right now. President Bush said that the countries harboring these poeple will also be held accountable. There are reports that we may bomb Afghanistan this weekend. All of the hijackers who were on the planes have been identified. The news reported today that the body of a flight attendant was found with her hands tied. Late this evening the Pentagon caught on fire again. I don't know if it's out yet. It's so sad to see all the people on t.v. with pictures of their family members who are missing. They all have a different story, each one of which is heart wrenching. All the major channels have had nonstop coverage since Tuesday. Another issue that has risen is the problem of asbestos in the air, which is very dangerous. Everyone has to wear masks. In a press conference today Pres. Bush almost started crying. I'm glad it's him who has to deal with this and not Bill Clinton or Al Gore. Bush seems so much more genuine and compassionate. There was footage shown of Clinton visiting with family members-mostly female, and he kept hugging them. Given his history it didn't seem nice and conforting-it was just weird. The US gov't is talking with Pakistan right now, trying to get them to comply with what we're doing. They have been given the request of closing their border with Afghanistan, and letting our planes fly over their country. We'll see what happens with that, but I would imagine they would cooperate. Also today 10 people were arrested (9 men, 1 woman) at NYC airports. They had fake ID, knives, and info identifying them as pilots. Whether they were planning another attack we may never know, although it seems likely. The plane that hit the Pentagon was reportedly supposed to have hit the White House, but something went wrong and they crashed there instead. Alot of people made cell phone calls from the planes. They called mostly family, but I think one man called 911. One man who called from teh PA plane said some of the passengers were going to try to overtake the hijackers. Apparently that's why it crashed there and not into a building. They are using many different things to help find people at the WTC. There are dogs, cats (???), heat sensors, and robots that sense heat and movement. One rescue worker is in the hospital after falling 6 stories. They said something about back problems, but I haven't heard anything new. They are using horns at the WTC to warn of danger. 2 or 3 blasts mean run and get out as fast as you can. Alot of the rescue workers are getting their hands cut up from sifting through debris because they don't have gloves. Construction boots are also in need because the bottoms of the boots are being scorched. I still can't believe this is really happening. I never ever thought we would be attacked here in the U.S. We're the most powerful nation in the world, so how did this happen? People keep calling this a cowardly act, but I don't think it is. Not many people in the world would dare to do this and take us on knowing that we wouldn't just sit there and do nothing. They were either brave or stupid! But considering the type of operation they planned and carried out, they weren't exactly morons. I just heard on the news that the people arrested at the airport were on the FBI's list of people associated with the hijackers. At Logan Airport in Boston on Wednesday, I think, they found a rental ar that had flight manuals in Arabic and the Koran in it. Other countries worldwide have been extremely supportive. Yesterday at Buckingham Palace they played the American National Anthem at the changing of the guards. A lot of countries also lost people in this attack. The ones I can remember are Great Britain, Japan, South Korea, and either France of Germany. Tomorrow is a National Day of Mourning. Even Wirthlin cancelled work and BYU postponed Spring Fling. Many other things have been cancelled or postponed as well, such as the Emmy's, the Latin Grammy's, football, golf, baseball, late night talk shows and Broadway shows. On the news earlier this evening they had a CEO of a company that was located on the 101-105 floors of the WTC. He got to work when they were evacuating. As people were running ouf he asked htem what floor they were from. He only got to the 91st floor. All of his employees who were there are missing. The other employees went back to work despite him voting against it. They didn't want to stay at home. As he was crying he kept talking about how he had 700 families to take care of. Another person who died was David Angel. He was on one of the planes and worked for the tv show, Frasier. Also on a plane, the one that hit the Pentagon, was Barbara Olson. Her husband is a high level gov't official and she was also well known in political circles. My hand is cramping up from so much writing! I'll have to write again tomorrow. I'm sure there will be more news then."