September 11, 2001 became the defining moment of my political life. All the never thought of lessons of patriotism taught by my parents and educators, and reinforced by a childhood filled with 4th of July celebrations, all the carefully chosen books, movies and culture I was exposed to crystallized that day. It was the moment [...]

In memoriam.

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A video remembrance from The Daily Caller.
Ten years have passed since 19 men hijacked 4 commercial airliners, destroying the World Trade Center towers and part of the Pentagon. For many, September 11th, 2001 will always be remembered as a day that changed life in America. Most will disagree on what those changes [...]

September 11, 2001: “Today: Less humid. Sunshine. High 79.”

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Last week, a series of audio recordings were released by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) that detailed the aviation response on that horrible day. The New York Times has created a page that allows you hear the tapes with a rolling transcript. Kudos to them for doing [...]

September 11, 2001 - I was watching the 13" TV on my kitchen counter while feeding breakfast to my then 18 month old Lizzie Rose. She had just started attending "Center Base" class for special needs infants and toddlers at the nearby county MR/DD school. It was an incredible morning, my doors and windows open [...]

I remember. I'll never forget.
Here is my 9/11 essay from 2009, reedited for this anniversary:

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From the 104th Floor
by Leda Rodis (age 14)
When the plane hit the building
rocked first
to the right
then
to the left,
and outside all the skyscrapers
of New York
seemed to tremble.
The alarms screamed louder
than we did, and I knew
it was time to get away. It's funny
what you notice:
a pen rolling across the floor
my screen saver flicker and go off
a picture [...]

Never, ever, forget.
At Ground Zero there is the most eloquent statement about America in the early 21st century, and that is a seven-story hole. 9/11 was something that America's enemies did to us. The hole in the ground a decade later is something we did to ourselves. It is a mark of shame that [...]

Gitmo terrorists are now Guantanamo refugees. How's that for change? As Humberto would say, unreal.
From Human Events:
REPORTER QUESTION: Talk to us a little bit about response and talks and any commitments that you may have gotten from our European and other friends in the international community about taking in Guantanamo detainees as the camp in [...]

Robert Talhami, a loving father and husband, was an equity derivatives broker for Cantor Fitzgerald on the 104th floor of One World Trade Center. He was an immigrant, just like many of us, moving to the United States from Jordan with his family at the age of 7. Robert graduated high school in Caracas, [...]

On September 11, 2001 our country lost 2,996 people as a result of the coordinated terrorist attacks in New York, Washington DC, and Pennsylvania. Their names will be read on this day every year as part of a long list of those who lost their lives on that sad and desperately horrible day.
As I wept [...]

Eight years on and the tears still well up and my body tenses with anger whenever I see footage of that morning.
As I do every year since the events of that day, I steel myself and watch the Fox News and ABC News coverage of the event as archived here. This has become one of [...]

September 11, 2001: “Today: Less humid. Sunshine. High 79.”
6:00 AM: Polls open in New York City for primary elections.
7:59 AM: American Airlines Flight 11 [carrying 87 innocent people, including crew, excluding hijackers] takes off from Boston’s Logan International Airport for Los Angeles.
8:00 AM: New York City public schools open for the fourth day of the [...]

As a senior vice president for Aon Risk Services, Samuel Salvo worked on the 105th floor of Tower 2. He last spoke to his wife, Gladys, about 8:30 a.m., right after the first plane hit Tower 1 and before the second aircraft slammed into Tower 2.
I said to him, "A plane just hit the World [...]

Joe was an employee of Euro Brokers Inc., located on the 84th floor in the South Tower. He was known by his co-workers for his dry sense of humor and for being extraordinarily helpful to his colleagues. Tributes left at the company’s 9/11 Memorial Web Page are testimony to his friendliness and good character. For [...]

In memoriam.
Gordon McCannel Aamoth. Edelmiro (Ed) Abad. Maria Rose Abad. Andrew Anthony Abate. Vincent Abate. Laurence Christopher Abel. William F. Abrahamson. Richard Anthony Aceto. Erica Van Acker. Heinrich B. Ackermann. Paul Andrew Acquaviva. Christian Adams. Donald L. Adams. Patrick Adams. Shannon Lewis Adams. Stephen Adams. Ignatius Adanga. Christy A. Addamo. Terence E. Adderley. Sophia B. [...]