Sandy vs 9/11

In this corner, weighing 3 million pounds, emanating from various areas of the Middle East.....it's Niiinneeee Eeeeeleeeveeen!   And in the opposite corner, weighing in at a similar 3 million pounds...from the intersection of the U.S. and Canada...Huuriiicaaaane Saaannnddyyy!

It would be quite a boxing match if it ever occurred in some parallel universe, but no matter.  An actual battle has been playing out in broadcast media, social media, and even in that antiquated medium called print.   The comparisons are being made at many different levels, led predominantly by politicians, and for the purposes of federal reimbursement and decisions about safety.

First, it seems pointless to compare these events on any level.   One was a calculated, diabolically planned terrorist attack that developed over many years.   The other was a natural occurrence without any natural enemies that took just a few weeks to develop.   But don't get me wrong.   The damage inflicted was equally devastating and they cut deep into our collective psyches.   However, to be fair, it's worth exploring the notable similarities and differences.

Hurricane Sandy and 9/11 shut down the U.S stock market.   They closed public transportation, many businesses, and schools.   They made it difficult for people to focus on anything else but the immediate matters at hand, and it exposed a breach in our security.   Communication was virtually shut down, and it became difficult to alert your friends and family about your whereabouts.  These events even forced our political leaders to rise to the occasion and many raised their profiles and approval ratings.

They also brought us closer together.  We began to talk to people that we'd usually ignore.  Race and religion no longer mattered.  We were all Americans.   Americans challenged to get their lives back together.  It also made us take a second look at what we had.  If your family was still in tact, you were grateful.  If your house was still intact, you were grateful.  So it made us take pause; something that we rarely schedule into our weekly calendars.

But that's where the comparisons end.

When the towers fell, more people perished.  It was over 3000.   With the hurricane, the number stood near 43.   (Please note that these numbers are only for the basis of comparison, as just a single death is too many.)  9/11 essentially turned off lower Manhattan, and specifically those areas near Wall Street.  Hurricane Sandy shut down power for over 50 percent of the tri-State area, many of whom are still without it.

The terrorist attack shook us at our foundations, including friends, families, and co-workers.  Hurricane Sandy shook the foundations of houses, businesses, boardwalks, sending many into the ocean or just into a state of massive dilapidation.   After 9/11, most of us had places to return to, either home or business.  In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, some people don't know where to go.

9/11 was a massive violation.   Hurricane Sandy was a massive Armageddon.  Right now, people haven't had their power for a full week.  Gas is scarce, and the working pumps have 2 hour lines.  I have co-workers that lost their homes and friends spending several days in other peoples homes just for heat and hot water.  Some of these may even be out of state.

And yet, we still have people trying to link these two events.   The New York City Marathon was a great example.   The initial thought was if we ran the race after 9/11, we shouldn't have a problem running it now.  We all know how that turned out.  It also seemed like the Red Cross naturally gravitated to downtown Manhattan again, because the power was shut down there, and after all, that's where they went last time.  Meanwhile, the people on Staten Island and in Queens that really needed the immediate help, had to wait longer.  It was even rumored that before the cancellation of the NYC Marathon, Mayor Bloomberg called former Mayor Rudy Giuliani to ask for advice.   Are you kidding?

I think it's time we stop connecting these two events and let them stand on their own.   They are different, and so are our feelings towards them.   Instead, let's focus our efforts through all means possible, getting assistance to the people who really need it.


Help someone get gas for his generator.  Bring food and water to an area without it.   Offer your homes to friends and neighbors without power.   And most importantly, keep people informed.

9/11 and Hurricane Sandy are in similar weight classes - they're both heavyweights.   But that's where the comparisons end.

9/11.....a thought process

Ten years ago, sitting in a downtown office in New York City, I had many thoughts running through my head.

The first of which was trying to process the enormity of what had just happened. Hijacks, terrorist suicide, crash landings, and an act of war were all words and phrases that circled the wagon otherwise known as my eyes.

So now I was half way home. I knew what I was thinking as it related to the day's events. Now it was time to move on to the other half. What were the perpetrators thinking?

Yes, I eventually figured out that the terrorists wanted to use our own planes against us, destroy national landmarks, and wreak havoc on several thousand lives as well. But as the weeks began to pass, I found myself once again asking, "what were they thinking?"

Did these trained assassins and their leaders not think that there would be retribution? Did they not think that it would bring our nation together in complete unity? (at least for awhile anyway). Could they not surmise that we would eventually win the game of hide and seek and find their militant masterminds? Or that these events wouldn't force the improvement of our security personnel?

I couldn't know for sure. In fact, I still don't. Because the attacks from a decade ago still seem unfathomable to us all.

Today we commemorate and honor those who fought and lost their lives 10 years ago. We do this with flowers, processions, and speeches not only at Ground Zero, but in small towns and communites across the country.

At the most symbolic site of all, buildings have once again risen. A pool glistens with a continuous flow of water, symbolic of the memories of those we lost, forever alive in our collective consciousness. The names of the deceased are emblazoned in stone all around this pool, once a pool of blood, and now of water. Families snapped photographs of the names of their loved ones, and some even used paper to trace them, so they had a version at home as well.

Politicians arrived but left politics behind. Religion was absent from the ceremonies with the only reference at all being, "God Bless America." The media broadcasts had more moments of silence than moments of commentary.

Just what were the terrorists thinking now? Ten years later, we came together as one yet again. The city rebuilt and so did many companies, fire stations, and families. The buildings rose once more and so did we. Because that's what this country does. It remembers, it heals, and it moves forward.

Whatever your thoughts are today, make them proud. And let's hope that next time terrorists plan to think....they do it twice.