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It is sad, destructive, and horrific. It will
result in the ongoing waste of resources, deep human suffering,
and daily misery impacting decent people everywhere. |
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A decade after
9/11/2001, Americans continue to fight over the use, meaning,
and memorialization of the ground once occupied by the World
Trade Center's twin towers. New York's City's mayor, New York
State's politicians, the buildings' owner, people who lost
friends and family, American and non-American Muslims, patriotic
Americans, and America-haters cannot develop plans for what to
do on that parcel of land or in the undeveloped replacement
buildings. |
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The problems are
not based upon competitive and normal business dealings wherein
business people attempt to optimize their financial returns,
city planners attempt to optimize city resources, and businesses
attempt to expand their products, services, and employee base. |
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Instead
problems relate to issues of appearance. That is, how will the
mayor appear to his constituents if he approves city office
leasing in the new buildings; how will Muslims appear to their
brothers around the world if they do not build a mosque within
500 feet of the location; how will patriots appear to America if
they allow a mosque to be erected essentially upon the land
where there once was planted America's world trade edifice; how
will America-haters appear if they allow the site to become a
memorial to those who perished while they were performing their capitalistic business responsibilities. |
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The War Against
Terror continues. It waxes and wanes. Innocents die.
Productivity is lost. Bin Laden is dead. People of several
nationalities have died while continuing to conduct business.
People of several nationalities have died fighting to defend
America, Iraq, Afghanistan as well as other nations and tribal
homelands. People spend their lives plotting the killing and
takeover of people unknown. |
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The tragedy of
911 is that those who died innocently as victims and those who
died bravely defending, and those who died cowardly in suicide
attacks have sacrificed their lives to guarantee the
perpetuation of the Long War. |
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And ten years
after 911, the hole in the ground produced by deranged fanatics
becomes more visible, deeper, and bloodier. |
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