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First-Person Account Of Today's Attacks
I was scheduled to testify today at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's "Patent Theatre" in Crystal City, Virginia, on the intellectual property aspects of the proposed Hague Convention on Jurisdiction. I had sweated for days over a prepared oral statement about the treaty's implications for student coders and journalists.
My friend Rob Carlson and I left Baltimore early (shortly after 7:00 a.m.) and deposited ourselves at an outlying Metro stop, intending to take the subway into Crystal City. We arrived without incident.
Upon disembarking at Crystal City, I gave the sounds of various sirens little heed -- even as the municipality's Battalion Chief (fire department) roared past, red and white lights flashing.
"There must be a fire nearby," Rob said, glancing upward as fluffy chunks of ash drifting down into the USPTO's courtyard like huge downy feathers.
The hearing room was uncharacteristically vacant. I sat down next to my former boss, Consumer Project on Technology director Jamie Love, and flipped open my laptop to read over my prepared oral testimony.
"Did you hear? A plane hit the World Trade Center in New York!" Jamie whispered excitedly, ensconced in a pile of laptop peripherals and scattered newspapers. I froze momentarily, floppy disk half inserted into my laptop. Looking up, I noticed most of the hearing's attendees appeared to be in shock. A few sat rigid in their seats, hands folded in their laps, staring ahead in numbed silence. Others milled about, busily discussing the foreign policy ramifications of the morning's events. No one seemed to be concentrating on the hearing.
Federal government officials present -- (I recognized members of the U.S. State Department, Copyright Office and PTO) reacted differently -- receiving the sporadic stream of dispatches and rumors from PTO staffers running in and out of the Theatre with detached contemplation. It appeared that the Feds had discarded their usual mantle of chatty, diplomatic ambiance, and had switched into Crisis Mode.
"If anyone really wants to testify now, they can. At this time, we are not evacuating the building," proclaimed a Patent Office functionary. No one took her up on her offer, and several folks murmured quietly about the inappropriateness of proceeding with the hearing given the context and magnitude of events.
More runners entered the Theater, bearing news of additional disasters -- some alleged, some actual. Rumors about the destruction of various Washington agencies and landmarks whipped throughout the conference room.
I closed my laptop, which had been teetering idle on my lap for several minutes. People started for the door, hesitating in case the unspoken consensus for scrapping the hearing was improbably reversed. Cell phones were whipped out of suit pockets and family members dialed to no effect.
"You can always submit written testimony." declared U.S. delegate to the Hague Conference and PTO attorney-advisor Jennifer Lucas as the long-planned hearing disintegrated.
I felt a mix of emotions: disappointed that I wouldn't have the chance to testify and lock horns with the MPAA and other industry lobbyists, and guilty for having such self-centered thoughts during this crisis.
Rob and I headed out toward the lobby. He decided that we should skip the elevator and go down a flight of stairs to the lobby.
The courtyard of the Patent Office facility (which had been nearly deserted when we arrived) was packed with a milling, chattering crowd. Security guards peered about pensively as if reassuring themselves that the building was indeed still standing. Soon after, a shout went up that the Patent Office was being evacuated.
The head of the U.S. Delegation to the Hague Conference (and State Department legal advisor) Jeff Kovar brushed past me with an associate in tow.
"We're walking to the State Department." Kovar grimly mentioned to no one in particular, and started the long hike back to his office.
Rob and I weaved our way through gridlocked traffic and headed toward the Crystal City Metro station. Several Federal Marshalls stood about -- one wearing a boxy bulletproof vest, another wearing a pink blouse with a lanyard ID. Military personnel huddled together on the sidewalk, segregated according to the hue of their uniforms. Fast moving, thin white clouds rushed overhead. I wasn't sure if they were really smoke pluming from the Pentagon.
We jumped into a Yellow Line train alongside a pair of blue-shirted Air Force officers. I watched as an orange ladybug crawled up the silver-stitched epaulet of the officer closest to me, and informed him of its presence. He stared at me for a silent moment before carefully removing the insect.
"That's the least of my problems," he said. "Thanks anyway."
my girlfriend had a friend in one of the airplanes that went down. anyone who calls for forgiveness and not retaliation for this act should have to pick one of their friends to be killed and then see how they feel. fucking barbarians.
We here at school have begun collecting images and video to help out with the bandwidth problem the news sites are having... Here Also feel free to send anything in...
That's what you get. What goes around comes around. For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction, etc.
I, as an American, am disgusted that the US has allowed itself to be hijacked by people like Donald Rumsfeld, Madeleine Albright, James Rubin, William Cohen, Richard Holbrooke, Joseph Lieberman, and the zillions of other Jews that work collectively to ensure America's undying support for a country that murders innocent people (in the name of pro-active self-defense).
This was no surprise, and maybe it'll make a few people realize that we, as a nation, shouldn't be sticking our collective nose in the Middle East, where it doesn't belong.
The scene on the news looked like something out of Independance Day. People running for their lives, a building collapsing behind them, rubble flying in all directions and tons of smoke in the air. Nobody I talked to could describe it as anything but "something out of a movie."
The loss of life is so huge, so colossal, that nobody can really imagine the impact.
This country should get all its military forces together and destroy the military bases and government buildings of every country that has ever helped terrorists. The doors of all terrorists' (known, alleged or suspected) homes should be kicked in at night, and they should be dragged to jails, beaten and questioned. They should be held without bail until a trial. Any people found guilty, and their family members, should be punished severely.
Think actions like this are acts of terrorism? Think two wrongs don't make a right? Why don't you watch the news again and see that plane plunge into the tower. That airplane was full of innocent people, flying to a vacation or to conduct business, or returning home to their families and loved ones. jhaberman writes "A lady I work with has a friend that had a daughter on one of the flights. She said that her daughter (the passengers) were allowed to call loved ones and say goodbye before the planes crashed. To think of that just makes me sick to my stomach."
Pieces of shit scumbags destroyed so many lives today--not only those of their victims, but the victims' families, friends and coworkers. The United States should not play any more games. Terrorists and countries that support them understand only death and destruction. Attempting to reason with them is like talking to a wall, except that a wall will understand you better. All terrorists or would-be terrorists should have their puny balls shaking from fear and should lose much sleep over this. The US must teach the world that nobody fucks around with us. Governments of other nations will think one hundred thousand times before even letting some piece of shit garbage scumbag terrorist onto their soil, because they will know that if any terrorism, even the tiniest amount possible, happens in our country, those governments will be destroyed to the point that their people will have to put together a new government from scratch. NO FUCKING AROUND. AT ALL. PERIOD.
Don't even think about saying that this will cause new acts of terrorism. There won't be any fucking terrorists left.
I've heard reports that the perps took over the planes with *knives*, not guns.
God DAMN it, I don't want to get on a plane ever again without a sidearm. If there's a firefight on a plane, the plane can come down, but we just learned today that that's not the worst thing that can happen.
El Al has NEVER had a hijacking, because they have armed IDF men on every flight in civilian clothes, and the terrorists know it.
I want every man and woman with a concealed carry permit to be allowed to carry their weapon on aircraft from now on. This business of having hundreds of people at the mercy of a handful of nutcases has got to stop.
When that asshole shot up the train on Long Island a few years ago, he was able to reload TWICE before the people on the train realized that he wasn't going to spare anyone if he could help it, and jumped him.
All the crap we've put up with, invasion of privacy, victim disarmament, and general docility training didn't prevent this attack. I say it's time to change our tactics.
-jcr
The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
The look on his face was the exact same dumbass What Me Worry? look he ALWAYS has on his face.
Just when we need a leader... we get Dubya instead. Thanks, Republicans. Couldn't even have picked a actual breathing human being like McCain to run, couldja? I don't grok how a man without a single redeeming quality whatsoever (I'll send a dollar to anyone who can name one) got to be leader of the free world. He isn't even fun to make fun of... it's like making fun of clowns, what's the point?
I've never been more embarassed to be an American. Biggest crisis to come along in my lifetime, and we don't even have a figurehead to look to for soothing words, much less a bonafide leader.
Yeah, yeah, I know, it's flamebait and my karma could suffer, and all the Republican apologists will come crawling out from under their rocks to assault ol' Bill Clinton as a halfwitted counterpoint, but whatever. I'll vent if I feel like it.
...happen all the time. im not saying its not a tragedy, but its not the end of the world. might be the end of america, but thats debatable too. the point is, just because america was attacked, doesnt make it more important or more of a tragedy than any other country. im sure most of you, when a bombing in a foreign country comes on the news, think "oh dear...shocking really..." and flip the channel. but when it threatens dear old US-of-A, its immediately the end of the world. set my alarm clock for when we get world wide devestation Independance Day style.
Dont ask me...Im just the bass player.
maybe because they have souls. unlike you.
Hi,
I'm sending this letter to everybody in my address book. I'm sure everybody knows about the terrorist attacks on our country. What some of you might not know is that people in other countries celebrated the devastating attacks on thousands of lives in our country. This was shown on television.
I have never heard of Americans, or people of any *civilized* country for that matter, celebrating the deaths of so many thousands of *innocent* lives. I wish to point out that these same people--the ones who are celebrating right now--benefit from millions or billions of dollars of American money sent to them as foreign aid. The thought of these scumbags celebrating the deaths of those who support them disgusts me beyond belief. I am writing letters to folks in our state and federal governments, urging them to cut off monetary support for these countries. This will serve two purposes:
1. The money should be used to help those who lost family or friends to the disaster.
2. Cutting off foreign aid to these countries serves as a very mild punishment for their celebrating of the death and destruction in our country. If they celebrate our deaths, let them starve for lack of food and money.
I urge you to write similar letters, and to urge your family, friends and neighbors to do the same. The time has come to punish those who would have us slaughtered.
hey man, I am a Christian, but I would gladly take your liver out of you and eat it. would this be the Christian thing to do? Well considering you did nothing but be a asshole, I would be sinning. But hey, that's why God forgives. but yea, there were a lot of weepy bastards out and about, and on tv you had people saying that we need to pray to God for a solution. Go ahead and pray if you must, but I think it is time to get out there and kill! who the fuck are you to say anything about Christians, you insignificant little woman.
Kill all proponents of religeons who advocate 'spiritual ascention to heaven' through suicide/murder.
It worked really well on the vikings, afew hundred years ago.
These people should be nuked back to the stone age, since they cannot be trusted with steel weapons.
Under their system of belief, it would be justifiable to nuke them all, because 'god knows his own.'
Start with afganistan, then work our way south;
owning the middle east would definately help gas prices.
If we decide not to kill them all, they would make great crash test dummies and medical test subjects. Maybe then we could cure aids, or something.
These are not people, they are animals, and should be treated as such.
Afew innocents would probably die, but thats the way life is sometimes. Sometimes you have to kill things lower on the food chain to survive.
Kill them before they kill more of us.
Truth isn't Truth - Guliani