BOP 9/11 Archive: Part Three
By BOP Staff
September 13, 2011
BoxOfficeProphets.com
to hell than bring them to justice."
"The government still stands, the economy will not collapse, american resolve will galvanize and someone will pay the price for this act. it won't matter if they are the right person but there will be hell to pay.
"Lastly, has anyone heard from the air traffic controllers? When did they know they had a renegade? How fast did they ground traffic? I think the whole thing is amazing and doubt a small terrorist group is responsible. That being said, if you want to hurt Bin Laden et al, seize their accounts or funds. cut off the money and see what happens. Also, if china is backing Iraq (for what who knows) that is OK, it will just push Iran closer to the US - the more things change the more they stay the same.”
Musubi: “But, like hyde said, this is a symoblic attack, not a strategic act of war. And they demolished a highly visible symbol of American Commerce. Fucking cowardly fucks.”
Woody: “We've actually been saying for most of the day: why the WTC and not Times Square? I actually think they could have done more damage by grounding two planes down Broadway. I think this was clearly a TV thing...especially the forethought to crash the second plane 18 minutes after the first...for the TV cameras.”
RKD: “My theory is partially that they waited the 18 minutes until not only cameras were on scene, but also rescue workers.
"Either that or that's just the quickest schedule they could work out.”
Reagen Sulewski: “It's been in the back of my mind most of the day that this could be some kind of 'Project Mayhem' type group... it feels too well orchestrated.”
Jerry Simpson: “Or Rock Center...there are at least two network news groups there...that's what I'd do, take out the media...Can you even imagine, right now, what Pearl Harbor was like without instant media? or what today would have been like without CNN, Fox, ABC, etc?”
Feathers McGraw: “Without media coverage, it's not a terribly effective terrorist attack.
"The delay between strikes on the WTC towers seems almost certainly to have been to allow media crews time to get cameras trained on the building to capture the second collision.”
Jerry Simpson: “I was just imagining the terror of seeing CNN go dark.”
C. Hyde: “Don't forget that old showbiz standard - timing. This attack was planned to go off both at the time that the building would be most full, right while the markets were opening and when the country was waking up so that they could experience a full day of terror before going to be with the spectacle one of the world's most recognizable symbols of commerce (and a nerve center for international markets) disappearing from the New York skyline and crumbling into dust on their mind. Every angle of this attack was calculated to cause the biggest psychological damage to the American psyche as possible.”
Feathers McGraw: “That would have been terrifying if it had happened after footage of the WTC strikes had gotten out. Had CNN just gone off the air, no one would have known it was any different from "we are experiencing technical difficulties".
"Terrorism is the equivalent of an arch-villain telling you his master plan while he ties you to a fabulously intricate death machine.”
Dulcinea: “I did a transcript on the World Trade Center for Modern Marvels; it's fucking difficult to have caused so much damage that those buildings collapsed. They even talked about the towers having been built to withstand plane crashes. This is just unbe-fuckiing-lieveable.”
texx- “One of the good things about living here (in Idaho) is, if We get bombed we know someone missed.” – Editor’s note: RIP texx. We miss ya, buddy.
Dulcinea: “Well, it’s begun. We're apparently attacking bin Laden's headquarters in Afghanistan, at least according to CNN. ...and I don't know if it's confirmed, but seems Mumpower was on the right track: Supposedly 12 airliners were reported missing at one point during this. All have now been accounted for, but still...”
Woody: “Really? I worked on a couple Modern Marvels a few years back. Not that one, though.”
Dulcinea: “That's a fascinating series, IMO, and doing the transcripts is always fun. Even subjects you'd think would be dull - I did one on the history of batteries - turn out to be interesting, because they find people who are so passionate about the subject. Amazing show.”
Woody: “I should have a researcher credit on 'tunnels' and a few others that now escape me. Part of my LA stint back in '94.
"Btw. things in manhattan are still crazy. Fucking serene but crazy. Just spent a few hours on a roof on Houston and Mulberry and watched the smoke while listening to NPR. Was kinda like a picnic until you really listened to what the reporters were saying and then adjusting your head 30 degrees and realizing they were talking about something...right over there.
"It's so surreal i don't know how to describe it. But it's very quiet around here. Still haven't talked to my mom even though I know she's okay. I left her a message telling her i love her and how hard my morning was...and i'm not sure you know how bad it was...when I ever heard the first plane was out of Boston...anyway...
"The report i got from my brother was that my mom said, 'Fuck, i'm in florida and i'm fine. He's right under that shit. Is he okay?' If she only knew what my morning was like.
"Anyway, you all know i'm conservative and voted for Bush...what's actually surprising right now is my liberal side...I'm terrified we'll do something stupid. All i care about is my fellow man. I don't want this to happen anymore, regardless of my bloodlust for
retribution.”
David Mumpower: “What's it like in NYC right now anyway? Can you even describe it?”
Woody: "I did in another post, but just so you know... It's completely surreal. feeling the first tower go
down and then looking at the TV and watching it live was fucked up.
"To be honest, I didn't dare leave my desk for a long time.
"Up on the roof of our office I personally witnessed a couple groups of folks after the initial plane jump off the 98 something floor hand in hand. That's what you guys didn't see on the news. There were hundreds of them, apparently. I could only stomach one group.
"I'm still trying to pretend it happend somewhere else...but then there's that huge fucking cloud right
there.
"I'm still amazed at the utter lack of military here. I've seen 1 blackhawk and a couple what i think are F16s flying around very high. I expected humvies in the streets by now.
"I'm very scared as to whether there's a few cells waiting to do some ground stuff tonight or after the subways are operating. This appears to be something that's been planned for a while...what else is in the plan?
"That's what it's like in New York right now. I want off the island...and there's no where to go."
David Mumpower: “Just be careful. We're pretty attached to you.
"(I say everyone on the list just moves to Belize in a couple of months when it's safe to fly again.)”
Musubi: “Just a thought. If you get a chance, drop by your local chapter of the Red Cross and donate blood.
I just got back from donating, and it gives me some small sense of happiness on this horrid day that when I was there, there were over 100 people in line to donate. The line grew longer as the day wore on, and although people were told there were 3-4 hour waits, even when I left the lobby was full. Many made appointments to return in the coming days and left. I talked to one of the volunteers and he guessed that over 600 people made appointments to donate in the few hours he was there.”
Woody: “Most of the places here are 10-20 block lines. Which I'm happy about. I'll get there. I'm just glad folks are doing their bit.”
Petronella: “Here in the 'burbs, the hospitals are turning us away. Tad and I called last night and were told to come back either today or tomorrow.
"I've heard some horrific stories. My old law firm's NYC office is in Tower Two, floor 89. They can't locate two associates and a few support staff. A friend of a friend's officemate got a call from her husband. He supposedly said "I love you, I'm jumping" and then nothing. That was it, when she told me that I just lost it. Needless to say, here in the 'burbs things are soooooo quiet. Most people are staying home, traffic's light, and things are far, far from normal.
"Woody, if you want to get out of Manhattan, we've got a guest room. I just finished it (My husband hates it, he thinks it looks too girly). If you want, your gf and you are certainly welcome.”
Dulcinea: “I'm still wondering if they're headed for the West Coast next. Seems logical for a secondary wave.”
Musubi: “Dear Lord, I hope not. I don't pray very often, but I will surely pray that is the end of the terrorism.”
Jerry Simpson: “My pals here have been talking about the same thing, and cannot come up with a single iconic place in LA that could be attacked. Really. Maybe we're just too spread out or anything...”
Feathers McGraw: “It might be the end of the terrorism that occurs today, but it occurs to me that whatever retribution the United States exacts faces the same point that Colin Powell raised in his statement from South America. He said something to the effect that democracy was an ideal, and that destroying buildings and killing people could not make it go away. The terrorists are taking actions against the United States as an expression of their ideals. How can you combat that?
"The darkest part of today is that it's only the beginning.”
Musubi: “Gee thanks, Mr. Sunshine. Think you could cheer me a bit more?”
David Mumpower: “You can never crush an ideal. What can be done is a criminal may be hunted down and then forced to be held accountable for his/her actions.”
Feathers McGraw: “I agree. And this is how martyrs are made.”
Musubi: “One man's martyr is another man's unspeakable evil.”
David Mumpower: “The beauty of how the deal with Noriega was handled is that he is virtually forgotten now.
"It's a blueprint for avoiding martyrs.”
Feathers McGraw: “Of course, at the time, how many people could actually tell you what crimes Noriega was guilty of?
"Whoever gets the rap for orchestrating today's events is going to make Timothy McVeigh look like Mother Theresa.”
“I fucking hate everybody. But primarily the motherfucking specks (no, I don't think they qualify as people) that are selling World Trade Center merchandise on eBay as of this afternoon.”
David Mumpower: “POTUS will be entering the West Wing tonight after all.
"(I feel hip like Sorkin)”
Kim Hollis: “So since there's not supposed to be any planes in the sky right now, should I assume that the jet that flew over when I walked out of my building tonight was him? Or was it a fighter jet?
Whatever, it freaked a number of us out.”
Bruno: “Believe me, I don't want to upset Musubi or anyone else after what has happened today, but I'm curious about the characterisation (by the media and the President) of these attacks as being 'cowardly'. Personally I think it would take either incredible courage or incredible faith to fly a plane into a building.
"Was the attack on Pearl Harbor also considered cowardly? Does cowardly actually mean 'a surprise attack'?
"It seems to me that both attacks were examples of brilliant planning and bravado.” – Editor’s note: This statement is similar to the one that got Bill Maher in so much trouble on Politically Incorrect
Dulcinea: “I think the characterization of this as 'cowardly' is because it’s directed at a non-military target; Pearl Harbor, while containing quite a bit of civilian population, was a military base.”
Feathers McGraw: “Bruno, I assume that the label of cowardice applies to attacking a target which does not know it is a target. Even Pearl Harbor was an attack on a military target. But I reluctantly concde the final point.”
Musubi: “Personally I find it cowardly that they not only killed innocents, but killed themselves, and thusly never had to face the horror that they created. Bravado does not equal bravery, IMO.”
David Mumpower: “Yes, they were cowardly. Any time your attack is faceless, it's cowardly. If I wanted to take you out, I would say 'I'm going to kick your teeth in' and then I would proceed to do so. I wouldn't randomly snipe you, your significant other and/or your child by crashing my car into yours. Why? Because one way gives you the opportunity to defend yourself and me to show I can beat you. The other shows that I can scrape the bottom of the barrel of barbarism in order to take you down with me. To me, there is a difference. You're more of a free thinker than I am so your mileage may vary but I see nothing demonstrating 'courage' or 'incredible faith' in driving a plane into a building where 50,000 people are defenseless and have done me no personal wrong. It's the distinction between religious fervor and religious zealotry. Anyone who is so insecure about their faith that they must exterminate all that oppose it is someone who is not a true believer in my opinion.”
Ursine: “I'm hearing rumors via the Internet (and I'm not crediting it yet) that gas prices are suddenly going through the roof - something about the petroleum futures market being destroyed. I *do* know that the biggest tenant in the WTC was Morgan Stanley Dean Witter.”
C. Hyde: “Actually, the biggest worry is whether OPEC can stay unified after the attack so the world petroleum supplies remain constant and uninterrupted. And also whether any retaliatory attacks by the us will cause disruptions. but the opinion of most oil industry analysts that I've heard is that prices will spike and then come back to earth fairly quickly, much like they did after the start of the Gulf War. The fundamentals for oil right now are not all that stong and this attack, horrific as it was, shouldn't really make the price move higher in the long run.”
Kim Hollis: “Yeah, but the reason I'm hearing down here in Central Illinois is that the suppliers fear that the refineries are still possible targets. You absolutely would not believe the lines at the gas stations here this evening. And how furious local people are about the issue given the enormity of the days events.
"Humans are vile, disgusting creatures.”
Ursine: “Duke, hope nobody hassles you over this stuff. The first thought out of everyone's head (and watching the whooping-up in Nablus, say, didn't help) is that It's Those Arabs. Kill 'Em.”
Scooter: “...which to me is so fucked up because that's what everyone said with oklahoma.”
Duke Fleed: “Oh, it's gonna happen, don't worry. It's not me that i care about. It's my dad who manages an arabic restaurant; It's my 14 year-old brother who is a high school student; It's my mother who has a thick accent; It's my sisters who have to work and go to university and interact with many more people than i do.
"It won't be abundant, but like with any racist or stereotypical comments, one is too much.” - Editor’s note: Duke is Muslim and while a native of Canada, he is of Lebanese heritage.
Jerry Simpson: I just gave blood, which made me feel good. It was also cool to see a line out the door at the red cross down the street. They diverted me to a Hospital (St. John's) where they had collected 96 pints of blood today. That restored a little hope for me.”