Looks like things are back to normal... at least until September 2012 (or maybe not?)

Looks like my various streams are largely 911-ghoulishness free. I can start paying attention to the world again. :)

And don't worry, I remembered the victims and their loved ones, but I did it positively at a short film festival at the Japan Society called "Films for Hope".  Most of these films were warm and positive and reminded me of why we should cherish life as much as we do.  Humanity has an immense capacity for good.  It's a shame we focus so much on the negative.  I do it, too, but I hope to change that.  This is part of how I remembered 911 victims. In fact, making the world a better place through storytelling has been my life's goal since long before 911.

Making people think, question, learn, change and grow is what art can do.

When all we do is focus on fear and suspicion we kill our imagination and our potential.  I hope what I have written and what I will write will inspire people to do more than just that.

So, perhaps next year at this time we, as humans, will be able to remember the victims in more positive ways, reflect on how best to serve their memories, and not feel compelled to relive their passing.  I hope what I do in the coming year (and years), along with what others do, will help us all get to that place.

Earliest form of 911 Exploitation by the Media Came Just Days After

I won't go on about this too much, but I remember right after 911 seeing the "911" issue of People Magazine.  I know it's a rag, but I was really surprised and shocked at what I saw inside of it.  I scanned in the parts that offended me the most and set up a web page detailing everything, including a pissed off email I sent to the editor at the time.  Check out this page here: http://thepete.com/disgustingpeople/

Please forgive the crappy design and layout--it was a time long before Flickr, blogging or even Web 2.0.

 

 

It Has to Be Said: Why 9/11/11 is bugging the shit out of me

Wow... I'm having to unfollow some folks who insist on posting 911-related photos. I wasn't a NYC resident on 9/11/1 but I don't know why people need to relive this event annually and usually do so without recognizing the horrible overreaction it inspired from its victims.  I saw Newsweek's latest magazine cover which seems blissfully unaware of the positive spin it provides on death, war, torture and violence.  Then I saw, in a sad, self-congratulatory Photoshop montage of tweets,  sycophantic followers taking joy in praising said cover (man, that made me angry). I am too scared to look to the TV media because I can easily imagine the absurd depths they'll descend to in order to "properly" exploit the 10th anniversary of 911.

Even my absolute favorite podcast, Stuff You Should Know, got in on the 911-act and talked about "How the World Trade Center Memorial Works."  Usually they talk about things we should know, instead, they talked about stuff we're going to already know because everyone and their uncle is covering that memorial.  I would say that they handled it well, but not handling it at all would be the better path as, really, do you need to bother with this since so many other folks already are?

So, the day after tomorrow, we are going to remember the 3000ish people who died ten years ago on that day in New York, Pennsylvania and in Virginia at the Pentagon... but who will remember the hundreds of thousands who died in Afghanistan and Iraq thanks to the way we reacted?  And what about the tortured, the disappeared and our place in history?  All of these things will be ignored while we desperately try to convince ourselves that 911 justified everything we've done.

A Japanese person I know recently told me that the atom bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki taught Japan that the only way to respond to violence is with peace.  Responding with violence just means more violence.

What is so hard to grasp about this concept?

911 Memorial Post: Osama bin Laden in Custody (SIKE!)

It's that time of the year again. I live in New York City and, to me, it doesn't feel very different from being in LA. I don't watch TV that much, so I've missed all of the 911 specials. However, I'm pretty cynical, so I'm going to assume no one on CNN, MSNBC or Fox talked about how Osama bin Laden's FBI's Most Wanted page still fails to mention anything about 911. In case the FBI has since updated the page since I wrote this blog post, check out the screengrab of Osama bin Laden's FBI's Most Wanted page here: http://thepete.com/uploads/FBIoblwanted2007a.png

But more important than seeing 911 mentioned on Osama bin Laden's wanted page, it sure would be nice to see Osama bin Laden on the front page of the New York Times with the headline above it: "OSAMA BIN LADEN IN US CUSTODY"

It has been seven years, I think we won't ever get him at this point.

I just wish heads would roll for:

1) Failing to catch the man we all blame for 911 and failing to put him on trial.
2) Allowing the 911 attacks to happen in the first place. What do we pay those idiots for?
3) The government letting us down so dramatically in both the wars in Iraq and in Afghanistan.

The thing is, NOBODY has talked about catching bin Laden or how they'll hold accountable those responsible for allowing 911 to happen at all.

Remember when Bush said he'd get bin Laden dead or alive? Well, here he is saying bin Laden doesn't concern him:

Discover Simple, Private Sharing at Drop.io

Nothing like a "fearless" leader totally backing down on his promise to avenge the deaths of those victims of the 911 terrorists.

Happy 911-Day

Come on, let's be honest! In another thirty years, 911-day will be a holiday and we'll get the Monday before 911 off and we'll spend that day at the barbecue, cookin' up some brats!!

The actual dead will be long forgotten.

The fact that 5 years after 911 the guy the USG says was behind the attacks still isn't in custody will be forgotten, too.

The fact that nearly as many Americans have died in Iraq as died on 911 is something most of us will never know (source).

In thirty years we'll have forgotten all about how a handful of men took our freedoms away and blamed extremist muslims to get away with it.

In three decades, America will have moved on and will have an impossible time remembering what it was like before George W. Bush introduced us all to pre-emptive war.

Ah, what the hell? Break out the brats now, dammit! It's not like any of us really care about human lives.

Happy 911-Day!