~ Jon James
It’s hard to believe that those who were born the year that the September 11th attack took place are now 25-years-old. To me, it seems like a breath ago.
If you were old enough, you likely remember exactly where you were when you heard the news, likely before you’d heard anything official.
For me, I had just started vacation from my morning radio show and was heading north that day with my friend, Steve Pratt. We were bound for The Birches Resort in Rockwood. Well, that was the plan.
Before I left on this perfect fall morning, I was watching CNN to catch up on the news and my wife was out mowing the lawn at the home we’d just purchased within that last month.
Suddenly, BREAKING NEWS flashed on the screen. Back then, unlike now, “breaking news” meant something big.
I watched in disbelief as the network replayed the video of the first tower being hit. Then, as they were live and talking about a possible horrific accident as smoke poured from the north tower and without warning, a second plane hit the south tower. The network then stated that this looked more like an intentional act (an attack) than an accident.
My supervisor, Mac Dickson, called me up and asked me to postpone my vacation, saying that listeners would need a familiar voice on their radio the next morning as this played out and we figured out what was going on. I gladly complied with the request and we were a call in show all morning the following day.
Of course, two other planes crashed that day. One in Washington DC, hitting the Pentagon and one in Shanksville Pennsylvania, likely bound for Washington, which was forced down by passengers.
If you, like me, remember it, this was most likely the most consequential day for this country that you’ve lived through—unless, of course, you also remember the assassination of John F. Kennedy.
This is always hard to re-watch but it is important we never forget, as I feel many people already have.
Every person old enough to comprehend the magnitude of this horrible day have a chance to know exactly what it felt like thanks to media coverage, which was much more scant throughtout history.
The following is what I and many millions saw via CNN back in 2001.
NEVER FORGET.
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