The Wound is Still Fresh

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Comment by Theresia Whitfield on May 2, 2009 at 8:43pm

Mr. Troll,

No need to feel like you should tread carefully, my friend. (And I'm curious to know who the "others" are that feel they should tread carefully when communicating with me!) I am simply passionate. And you just need to be more informed. I am fully entitled to share my experiences and emotions surrounding 9/11 as it greatly affected me and so many others. Forgive me for being passionate about what happened and for fearing that people like you have forgotten. Have you ever been through something so tragic? Have you ever faced posttraumatic stress disorder? If not, then I don't believe you can speak for those of us who have. And I feel that your comments about Guiliani were an attempt to gloss over what happened and how Obama's photo op made those of us who were there feel. Your comments completely dismissed the point of my blog. For people to not understand the ramifications of such a stupid move shows a lack of emotion and a lack of intellect. Besides, most everyone else on this thread has agreed with me! I am certainly not dismissing every comment because I was there. I just get angry when people speak from what I perceive to be ignorance.

And I hate to burst your bubble but you might want to check out some other forums where lots of others have noted that Obama isn't quite as popular as the press wants him to believe. And I would truly encourage you to not put too much stock in the polls you referenced. Do a little more digging and you'll find thousands more people who were never asked their opinion and feel Obama is taking us down a very dangerous, socialist path. I don't think Obama got elected against all odds. Are you saying that just because he was black? Sad, if so. He was a rock star during the campaign. People were enchanted with his charisma and nothing more. They're now starting to see him for what he really is. I'm afraid I'm not now nor will I be the only person who sees our president as lacking as a true leader.

All of that aside, that's not the point of this discussion. You chose to pour extra salt in the wound by dismissing something that is so incredibly important to me, and, quite frankly, that pissed me off. I'm not going to dismiss your comments. If I was going to do that, I'd delete this thread. I just happened to disagree with you - passionately. If you can't handle that, then don't join the conversation.

And I pray, Mr. Troll, you never experience something so profoundly life changing. I wouldn't wish anyone that kind of pain and trauma. Almost as bad as that would be someone coming along years later to dismiss your experience and your feelings. It mattered to me. It mattered to thousands of others. And if you cared, it should matter to you.

Comment by John R.(Dick) Troll on May 2, 2009 at 7:13pm

Ms. Whitfield:
Like others who have communicated with you I feel the great need to tread carefully. You have often expressed yourself in relation to 9/11. But being there does not give you carte blanche to say whatever you like and to dismiss every other comment just because " I was there". Just as being Jewish or black is not a free pass to speak nonsense and dismiss all other commentary on race or religion.
None of us knows what the legacy of the Obama administration will be. But I think it is fair to say that, based on getting elected against all odds, inheriting the worst set of circumstances I've seen in my 60 years, and getting America moving again in the right direction( as confirmed by any number of polls) very very few people today, tomorrow and 8 years from now will ever describe his" lack of intelligence, lack of knowledge and lack of experience as a true leader". Indeed for your sake and the sake of our country I hope that you are the only person who ever sees him in that light.

Comment by Theresia Whitfield on May 2, 2009 at 5:14pm

Mr. Troll, You just don't get it do you? Were you there? Obviously not. I was. My blog post wasn't about Rudy Guiliani. It was about the bonehead you mentioned - President Obama and his lack of compassion, lack of intelligence, lack of knowledge and lack of experience as a true leader. And the blog post wasn't about me alone. It was about the thousands of people affected by what happened that day. The wound is still fresh, and yes, my views of Obama are not at all pleasant. His ignorance in this bonehead move just made my opinion of him sink even lower than it was, and I didn't think that was possible. He didn't pour salt in MY wounds alone but the thousands of people who still struggle with physical, spiritual, emotional and psychological wounds. Like I said, you just don't get it. It seems convenient for you to blame this on Guiliani. You must be one of those conspiracy theorists that seems to think the Bush administration was behind the attacks. If so, I ask you to respectfully keep your opinion to yourself.

Comment by John R.(Dick) Troll on May 2, 2009 at 3:25pm

Ms. Whitfield:

You state that Rudy Giuliani thinks about 911 every day. If I were Rudy Giuliani I would think about 911 every day as well, especially if I:

Allowed a politically chosen vendor to equip the fire dept and the police dept with incompatible radios.

Overruled the advice of subordinates and placed the city’s command center in the World Trade Center

Commandeered the city’s Police Commissioner as my bodyguard so he was unavailable to lead the troops in the crucial hours after the attack.

Showed absolutely no interest in security for the World Trade Center for years before the attack on 9/11 even though others had repeatedly brought forth suggestions for protecting it against terrorist attacks.

The Obama Administration is fully capable of acting in a boneheaded manner-I like Gus's choice of words. But to suggest that the the President in 2009 seeks to pour salt in your wounds from 2001 says more about your view of Obama than his view of you.

Comment by Michael R. on May 2, 2009 at 7:13am

Great points, Linda. I say we put YOU in charge:)

Comment by Linda J Ranger on May 1, 2009 at 12:49pm

The jet could have been added by Photoshop or another software program and the background photos of the city taken by a helicopter if they need new close ups. It really seems dumb and irrational to do this over NYC especially on a week day. The photo shoot could have been done with an announcement to the city populace and flown over the city on Sunday when most of the office buildings were empty.

Comment by Rick Wilkerson on May 1, 2009 at 9:35am

The reason I think there was a purpose for the flight other than to do a photo shoot is that Obama has been pretty savvy with PR so far, regardless of how you view his politics. This would have been seen, in advance, as a PR nightmare, by anyone looking closely. So much of the administration's efforts have gone towards "fear reduction" that it seems unlikely they'd go forward with something that would be such a painful reminder of 9/11.

Plus, if it was just a photo shoot, no doubt there could have been a different/better way to do it, using helicopters or something smaller than a jumbo jet.

It just doesn't add up, on its face.

Comment by Kirk Booher on April 30, 2009 at 8:37pm

Obama should at least know where the keys are to his plane (if it has keys). This infuriates me. And they say Bush was dumb. At least he (or his staff) knew where his plane was and his 'peeps' werent taken it for a joyride.

Comment by Gus Pearcy on April 30, 2009 at 7:50pm

Hey, Rick, have you figured out who was the shooter in the grassy knoll? LOL j/k :)

But I digress. I agree that it was probably the most boneheaded move by an administration. Perhaps there is more to this story than meets the eye, but it is a classic Homer Simpson move. DOH!

However, I can't fault Obama. I understand that he can't ride herd on the whereabouts of these planes all the time. There's just no way. Apparently the bonehead he left in charge is pretty oblivious to people in New York City.

Comment by Rick Wilkerson on April 30, 2009 at 3:34pm

There is clearly more than meets the eye here. I think that the "photo shoot" is a cover story. I believe this was a military drill or exercise of some sort and for that reason, advance notice was not provided to the populace. No doubt it was frightening to anyone who saw it. That's not a good thing.