List of World Trade Center tenants (9/11/2001), with type of business and floor where available. SiliconValley.com

The Counterterrorist Myth — “A former CIA operative explains why the terrorist Usama bin Ladin has little to fear from American intelligence.” The Atlantic

Phil Agre, who always shifts into high gear sending out tons of useful URLs to the Red Rock Eaters mailing list when a crisis of such proportion occurs, pointed to the Stratfor (Strategic Forcasting) Situation Reports. One tidbit I haven’t seen mentioned anywhere else is that 9-11 is the year’s anniversary of the Camp David accords. (Recall that the Oklahoma City bombing was, deliberately, on the anniversary of the Waco conflagration.)

SiliconValley.com – Special Reports: a weblog with extensive coverage of multiple aspects of the situation. Blinked there is this disturbing observation by an unnamed former Boston FBI agent that my city is “a facilitator for terrorist activity. There have been cells here of bin Laden’s associates. They’re entrenched here. They’re able to use this area because of the proximity to New York and to fold into the local population, and they’re able to facilitate terrorist attacks.” Boston Globe So it may not have been just lax security at Logan airport. I wonder even more urgently what the civil liberties implications for Boston in particular are, and whether this city (which has its own brand of perennial racial intolerance) will be a particular setting for the outpouring of anti-Arab sentiment. [Disclaimer: just because I’m starting to post links to help us to be more conversant with bin Laden, don’t count me (yet) as among those who are rushing to judgment that this is attributable to him. While I’m hearing wire reports that U.S. listening posts have intercepted communications from his forces saying they’ve hit their targets, the verdict isn’t yet in…]

US Attacked: How You Can Help. Nice compendium all on one page, including on-click access to charities, sending condolences, discussion of “how the US should respond”. Lycos

‘Blowback’ : “In light of evidence from the recently completed US embassy bombing trials, (the authors) examine the genesis, operational methods and organisational structure of the Bin Laden network: Al-Qaeda.” A July 2001 analysis from Jane’s Defence Weekly. (As the estimable Fred Lapides points out, the term ‘blowback’ refers to a situation in which what you’ve set in motion blows up in your face. Bin Laden cut his eye teeth with the Afghani resistance to the Soviet invasion, which the U.S. trained and funded, of course.)

Engineers shocked by towers: “The structural engineer who designed the towers said as recently as last week that their steel columns could remain standing if they were hit by a 707.” Chicago Tribune However, a Salon feature discusses why the towers collapsed:

According to Gregory Fenves, a professor of Civil Engineering at the University of California at Berkeley, the planes weakened the buildings’ structures at key points. Fenves, working on information gleaned from preliminary TV reports, stressed that he was speculating. He said that if the planes had hit the structures higher, they could have merely damaged their tops; if they had hit lower, they would have been up against the enormous weight and resistance of the base of the buildings…

Once a building like a World Trade Center tower loses some of its support, the building in effect goes to work, Fenves said. “The loads are trying to redistribute,” he said. “The loads are figuring out how to get back down to the ground.” At the same time, he noted, the fires are deforming the physical properties of the support steel.

Explosions Rock Kabul. Has retaliation begun?

“The United States has denied that it is behind explosions heard near the Afghan capital of Kabul, not far from the city’s airport. Large plumes of smoke can be seen in the city.

The explosions came seconds apart, making buildings shudder in Kabul. There have been no sounds of airplanes or anti-aircraft fire.

During his Pentagon comments, Rumsfeld said the United States had nothing to do with the explosions.” The Boston Channel

Courtesy of Sam Smith (Progressive Review), here are some remarks by David McReynolds of the War Resisters’ League. There’s a fine line between these remarks, which deserve to be considered, and the position with which I don’t hold that we’re the real terrorists, got what we deserved, and are nothing but hypocrites for decrying today’s terrorist acts. Bush cedes too much power to the perpetrators of this action in his saber-rattling address to the nation tonight, when he invokes a ‘war on terrorism.’ I agree with the pundits suggesting we not aggrandize whomever did this; just call it a ‘terrorist attack’. McReynolds:

“We urge Congress and George Bush

that whatever response or policy the U.S. develops it will be clear that

this nation will no longer target civilians, or accept any policy by any

nation which targets civilians. This would mean an end to the sanctions

against Iraq, which have caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of

civilians. It would mean not only a condemnation of terrorism by

Palestinians but also the policy of assassination against the Palestinian

leadership by Israel, and the ruthless repression of the Palestinian

population and the continuing occupation by Israel of the West Bank and

Gaza. The policies of militarism pursued by the United States have resulted

in millions of deaths, from the historic tragedy of the Indochina war,

through the funding of death squads in Central America and Colombia, to the

sanctions and air strikes against Iraq. This nation is the largest supplier

of “conventional weapons” in the world – and those weapons fuel the starkest

kind of terrorism from Indonesia to Africa. The early policy of support for

armed resistance in Afghanistan resulted in the victory of the Taliban – and

the creation of Osama Bin Laden.

Other nations have also engaged in these policies. We have, in years past,

condemned the actions of the Russian government in areas such as Chechnya,

the violence on both sides in the Middle East, and in the Balkans. But our

nation must take responsibility for its own actions. Up until now we have

felt safe within our borders. To wake on a clear cool day to find our

largest city under siege reminds us that in a violent world, none are safe.

Let us seek an end of the militarism which has characterized this nation for

decades. Let us seek a world in which security is gained through

disarmament, international cooperation, and social justice – not through

escalation and retaliation. We condemn without reservation attacks such as

those which occurred, which strike at thousands of civilians. May these

profound tragedies remind us of the impact U.S. policies have had on other

civilians in other lands. We are particularly aware of the fear which many

people of Middle Eastern descent, living in this country, may feel at this

time and urge special consideration for this community.

We are one world. We shall live in a state of fear and terror or we shall

move toward a future in which we seek peaceful alternatives to conflict and

a more just distribution of the world’s resources. As we mourn the many

lives lost, our hearts call out for reconciliation, not revenge.”

Just some thoughts…

Last weekend I saw Apocalypse Now Redux, and the intensity of its searing images, which indeed had been with me since first seeing the film on its release day in 1979, had a renewed presence, just in time for its phantasmagoria to fuse with current events. Apocalyptic, indeed. I’ve been going through the motions of my day at the hospital today in a sort of half-reality, after being at home this AM watching events unfold on live TV until I realized I didn’t want these images played and replayed in front of my three-year-old daughter. There’s something comforting about being in a profession like caring for urgently sick patients which has to go on no matter what else is happening in the world; most things would seem so irrelevant for now. When I was able to connect with my wife, I broke down and sobbed, barely able to catch my breath — “My God, what kind of world do we live in??” Does today mark a sudden sea change, after which the world will be forever different? On the other hand, as horrible as this attack has been, people in many parts of the world live in daily fear of terrorism no different in horror if different in magnitude and drama. Welcome to the real world, U.S.? Get used to the post-traumatic scarring of our collective psyche by the eruption of events that shred the fabric of predictability and control with which our lives have been woven.

Many of us are probably thinking similar things. In a way, I’m surprised that this didn’t happen sooner. The methodology used in this terrorist attack appears to be exactly that publicly blueprinted years ago. Pundits talk about the rude awakening from “America the safe”, “America the invulnerable”, cushioned by our enfolding oceans, but our vulnerability to domestic assault and the indiscriminacy of targeting the general population have long been expected. It should not shock us either that it was so easy to carry out four simultaneous hijackings in the face of “airline security measures” (I concede, of course, that we don’t know if further actions, beyond these four, were thwarted today…). I’ve long suspected that we treat mostly our own anxieties and discourage only threats from the frivolous or erratic unbalanced with our x-rays and metal detectors. Turnover among security personnel is amazingly high and compensation amazingly low; the airline companies give the contracts to manage their gate security to the lowest bidder. Security checks are only as good as the vigilance of those conducting them, and subject to the predictable human frailties of diffidence, wavering attention, disinvestment, burnout, and arbitrariness. Lord, I was harrassed when my son and I visited the Statue of Liberty this spring because of a folding knife in my backpack!

I fear that today’s events may not be the culmination, but only the opening volley, in fact. Can we rest assured that the organization and discipline, the zeal and the impunity of such attackers won’t translate into a CBW or suitcase-fission weapon attack? Friends of mine here in Boston cautioned me not to be too comfortable drinking from the water supply today. I dismissed that as histrionics at first, but is it really unrealistic?? And then: we’re likely to wake up in a world tomorrow in which objections to the unprecedented crackdown on our civil liberties we’re likely to face will be about as popular as pacifist conscientious objectors were after Pearl Harbor.

So what can we do, if we live in a world of such terror? If you’re in New York — or even if you’re not — think about giving blood, now if ever… Two of the hijacked flights originated here in Boston. Soon enough, I suppose, it’ll be clear whether I or my friends and immediate community knew anyone on those flights and can be of personal support. Professionally, I may also be able to be useful if there is a need for specialized disaster response counselling for the families and friends of victims here, which is something I’ve trained and volunteered to do. Nowadays, however, the airlines usually bring in their own teams rather than use those, like mine, that are community-based. Barring that, all I can think of has been to take deeper breaths, think for an extra moment before I act, cultivate my compassion and caring, work for peace and justice in small and, if ever possible, larger ways, and raise my children to do so… although with no naive illusions. I have more of a sense now than perhaps ever before of belonging to a nation, a community… of victims. But it’s a cautious, wavering sense of belonging. I can only echo the sentiments of others that, as a nation, we had better think carefully before we decide if, and how, to address our collective thirst for vengeance — especially after hearing the news of Palestinians dancing in the streets rejoicing at these events. The rabid anti-Muslim hysterics are about to begin… Did you notice how ready the news anchors were to give credibility to scurrilous reports that Islamic groups had claimed responsibility?

Readers of FmH know my feelings about B— and his minions, and it goes without saying for me that the ignorant fundamentalist ideologues ought not to be in charge of this show at a time like this. Let’s remember that they didn’t have the country’s mandate to govern in the first place. Although it is customary to say that we all must pull together behind our Administration in a show of strength and unity at such a time of national crisis, if there were ever a time to remind them, and the world, that they do not speak and act for me in perpetuating the hatred by seeking unmeasured Biblical retribution, this is it. After Gandhi, “An eye for an eye will only make the whole world blind.” Our adamant collective anger will make this an unpopular stance, I know…

I usually like to buff, finesse, and worry my public thoughts into polished form; not good at off-the-cuff ruminating. But I needed to put down some of the inchoate, complicated feelings and reactions fresh. I know my first impulse was to go offline and run and turn on CNN when I learned about this in the morning, as I said in bold type below. It doesn’t seem easy to follow fast-breaking news by point-and-click. Nevertheless, the thoughtful reflections on today’s horror of many of the webloggers I follow (see sidebar) are worth reading.

Mostly, right now, my heart is with the families of the victims of this carnage…

Turn on your TV! In an apparent terrorist act, two planes have been flown into the World Trade Towers in New York. As I just watched the coverage, news is breaking that there is a fire at the Pentagon after an apparent plane crash there. Addendum: all air traffic in US grounded. Another plane crash in western Pennsylvania.

Novel Auction Offers Chance to Buy Immortality — “A place in literary immortality is on offer to the highest bidder.

Best-selling novelists Robert Harris (Enigma), Ken Follett (Eye of the Needle), Pat Barker (The

Ghost Road) and Zadie Smith (White Teeth) are among the authors agreeing to name a

character in forthcoming books after those prepared to pay up for the privilege. Reuters The slide into literary whoredom accelerates [and I liked Zadie Smith too!].

Sacramento Slaying Suspect Kills Self. What’s crazy in Sacramento? This was the second mass killing spree there in three weeks. AP

Case Could Weaken Restraining Orders. A case currently wending its way through the Massachusetts court system challenges the restrictiveness of restraining orders, broadly used to protect victims of domestic violence.Charges have been dismissed against a man who was arrested twice for violating his restraining order by being at the same public event as his victim in their small town; the judge ruled that the prosecutors had not met the burden of proving his proximity had criminal intent. Advocates for battered women fear enforcement of restraining orders will be relaxed; others feel defendants’ rights need to be upheld in these cases. Boston Globe

Popsicle Jokes Fall Victim to Globalization

His Memory Returns, Byte by Byte This then-37 year-old former professional stuntman lost his memory and sense of identity after a violent assault in a Paris suburb three years ago. “I had absolutely no memory of who I was before the incident — I had to start again from the beginning.”

While it is the archetype we all learned from the movies*, this type of ‘total amnesia’ is very rare and is not a consequence of neurological injury to the brain but rather an extreme psychological reaction to the overwhelming emotional trauma. He embarked on a harrowing process of reinventing himself, and his knowledge of the world, from scratch, and he credits the Internet as crucial to the process. “For someone like me that was missing all his cultural references, the Internet was an extraordinary tool for filling in the gaps,” he said. “I organized my brain like a hard drive and sorted the information I found on the Internet into folders and files in my mind.” He now has a website up to provide information on memory loss. Wired

___________________________

*Here, part of a site discussing the depiction of disabilities in film, is a list of films using amnesia as a plot device. A more useful list (however, one to which I can’t give you a one-click link) results from searching the Internet Movie Database for “amnesia” in Plots (>80 hits) or Keywords (>220 hits).

Showbiz’s decline drags down critics

I find myself constantly reading favorable reviews of lousy films — “Rat Race,” “Osmosis Jones,” “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back” and the most emblematic of the situation, “American Pie 2” — written by estimable critics who have been around a long time and who, 10 or 15 years ago, wouldn’t have had any patience with any of these movies. But like everyone else, critics have been conditioned to give in and go along — or be branded a “drag” and left behind.

A critic who takes the risk of coming out against a cheap, salacious movie such as “American Pie 2” also risks being accused of being a killjoy or, worse yet, of being repressed. If you don’t laugh, see, you clearly have problems. Sacramento Bee

What’s the point of ballet? The Guardian begins a series on “difficult” art forms.

“…(D)ance seemed to demand an off-putting level of technical knowledge from the viewer. Unless the performer actually fell over, it was hard to know whether they were dancing moderately or spectacularly. The same is true of classical music and art – where only an expert can really detect a wrong note or incompetent brush stroke – but with those forms the spectator has the compensations of emotion, colour, story.”

Novel idea: the 24th annual Three-Day Novel-Writing Contest in Vancouver. Participants must come up with at least 100 typed pages over the course of a long weekend; the best will win publication. The consolation prize for everyone else is that you’re at least 100 pages closer to finishing your Great North American Novel. National Post

Nevermind: How political rock became a pose; pop politics, just a close cousin to guitar-smashing and girl-chasing?

Ultimately, the irony faced by today’s political bands is that they are themselves symptoms of the disease they set out to cure–a tendency that Rage, which agitated against globalization from within the confines of an a monolithic media company, epitomized so well. With the musical scene fissuring into a million niche markets controlled by three or four corporations, there’s no real perch from which to register one’s dissent, or reach out to others who might share the sentiment. The divide between fan and star has grown disconcertingly wide, and the concerns of one seem terribly far from the occupations of the other.

The New Republic

Google 2.0 — “People using Microsoft’s Internet Explorer are now being redirected to Microsoft’s MSN when they make certain kinds of mistakes. This means that Microsoft is taking control of another part of the user experience. This article discusses how Google might be able to help users and solve a few other problems others along the way.” Webword

E-paper moving closer: “The success or otherwise of this electronic equivalent to paper will depend in part on finding what is called the killer application.

What will e-paper be used for? Taking the place of newspapers, magazines and books, or replacing shop signs? Until that question is answered, we will not be discarding the real thing quite yet.” BBC

After more than fifty years of keeping their contents secret, some say because they would undermine Christianity, the Vatican will allow changes to the Bible based on findings in the Dead Sea Scrolls. The extent of the changes is not clear, but the Vatican says the new edition of the New Jerusalem Bible will take five years to complete. Many of the scrolls were bought by the Church and are under the scrutiny of Dominican scholars. Times of London

Movies the way God meant them to be seen. Says Roger Ebert: ” What do Fred Astaire’s feet, Kirk Douglas’ dimple and Willie Wonka’s hat have in common? Boneheaded studios and incompetent projectionists are cropping them out of the picture… I hold this truth to be self-evident, that all movies deserve to be seen in their original aspect ratios. Four recent events suggest that this truth is not universally evident.” Salon