Flight 93 and 9/11

The article tonight is captioned "Michelle Obama and Laura Bush commemorate 9/11 at Pa. site of Flight 93 crash." The loss of life at the Pentagon and the Twin Towers, particularly the loss of the Responders, was horrific as was the crash of Flight 93. A deference to the numbers and identities lost in New York City and at the Pentagon is understandable and memorial services will and should continue. As well, there were a thousand individual acts of heroism in New York and Washington in the wake of the attacks that should be remembered and honored. Yet, the fall of the Towers created a symbol the terrorists continue to benefit from and until their space is filled it remains a negative representation of our vulnerability. There was a dimension of strength and courage in Flight 93 that deserves a defined emphasis that seems grossly lacking. Those citizens on Flight 93 were aware of the intent of the terrorists holding them and, like the New York Responders, a level of danger they would face. Flight 93 represents, through the knowing and deliberate actions of some on the flight, the fighting spirit of our citizens that, more than the Towers or the gash in the Pentagon building, should come to symbolize 9/11 for America.