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“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed…”
For 232 years, men and women have been willing to die for the principle that governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed. On this Memorial Day Weekend, we are calling attention to the cynicism on display at Ground Zero because it is a glaring affront to that ideal.
Concerned citizens organized The Twin Towers Alliance over a year ago. Alarmed by the arrogant exercise of power in the redevelopment of the World Trade Center, we wanted to challenge the mediocre plan that is so unworthy of a nation whose only limitations are self-imposed.
The media could have made all the difference over the past five years. Instead they shut down debate and fostered a spirit of resignation. The people in charge of what gets talked about in this country seem to be enthralled by the glitzy but inferior site plan and keep telling us that people are sick of the wasteland at Ground Zero.
But they are sicker of it than most, because it’s a reminder of how badly they’ve performed. If they had been willing to give equal time to opinions like this one, then the future of the World Trade Center would have changed overnight. But since they were unwilling, then of course there wasn’t any reason to delay.
Fortunately, the public was well-served by those who obstructed the current plan and prevented us from mindlessly compounding a terrible tragedy with a terrible mistake. We are certain that if people were asked to choose between waiting to get it right or hurrying to get it wrong, most would choose delay.
We can understand why people with a shortage of imagination would like the current plan, and we can understand how the general public has been worn down by the process, but we can’t understand why the guardians of our freedoms in the press have prevented an honest evaluation of the options.
President Kennedy said: “A nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people.”
From now on, The Twin Towers Alliance will stop sending its opinions out to the gatekeepers, just to watch them whither on the vine. Instead, we’ll publish them at the “Let the People Judge” page and will reach out to those who have demonstrated a calling to inform.
From the beginning, a majority of the people thought that the Twin Towers should rise again. Even when anxiety levels were still very high and we were in a state of shock, that is what most people wanted — but that has not mattered to those who think it is their mission in life to do our thinking for us.
© 2007 The Twin Towers Alliance
