September 11th

The tenth anniversary of 9/11:  everything has already been said, too many times say some folks.  It is a rare individual that does not continue to grieve, even those who didn’t actually lose a friend or family member.  Even after 10 years I’ve never been able to visit Ground Zero.  And we continue to be afraid, more than we used to be.  At least initially, the mild earthquake we experienced a few weeks ago was scarier because…well, we all know why.  We know that much of the rest of the world lives within the shadow of random violence, and hope we are able to empathize a bit more, especially when the violence is caused by wars in which our country participates.  The anxiety is always lurking, ready to catch hold of us with a news item, a loud noise.  However, there is one aspect of the legacy of 9/11 that bears repeating, again and again.  Extremism and hatred are an equal opportunity blight on the human race.  No one religion, ethnicity, or nation has ever been completely free of fanaticism.  Reason, peace, and compassion are the only enduring antidotes.  To return hatred with hatred gives the fanatics the power to define us.