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“All the world is a battlefield open in front of us,” said Bin Laden’s deputy al-Zawahiri in July 2006 as he posed in front of the image of burning Twin Towers. “…It is a Jihad for the sake of God and will last until (our) religion prevails…We will attack everywhere.”
In response to the people who use our LobbyByFax feature to contact the Port Authority, Kayla Bergeron, Chief of their Government & Public Affairs, has been selectively sending out a letter with the following outrageous claims:
“There are more than 19 million people in this region, and hundreds of millions more around the world who have aired their feelings about what’s been done, what’s being done, and what should be done.”
“In the past 4 ½ years, we have undertaken an extensive public outreach campaign to gather input as to what should be built at the site. During that time, comments were solicited from hundreds of stakeholders, including the public, business owners, civic and government officials, which were taken into consideration. We’ve worked diligently to respect all opinions, because this rebuilding process is unlike any we’ve ever seen, and unlike any we will ever see again. Every stakeholder has shared valid ideas and concerns, and as a result, we’ve managed to build a consensus.”
Ms. Bergeron and her cronies expect us to accept that they “managed to build a consensus” after considering the comments of hundreds of “stakeholders” from among millions of people. But, there are stakeholders and, then again, there are Stakeholders . . .
Ms. Port Authority Bureaucrat: Meet Dr. Demented. Thanks to his exhibitionism, we have a hideously graphic reminder of how important the symbolism of the Twin Towers continues to be for those who intend to destroy us. And it is the enormity of their malice that makes us all stakeholders in the truest sense of the word. They are equal opportunity destroyers.
But our enemies are not the only ones who see the powerful significance of the Towers. Most stakeholders with a small “s” understand all too well and are heartsick at the blindness of our governor and mayor. The following sentiments were recorded in an editorial by Nicole Gelinas in May 2005 and are just as compelling today:
Susan Cohen lost her twin brother, firefighter John G. Chipura, on 9/11. “I have been saying this since the towers came down,” Cohen wrote . . . “I have been sending e-mail to everyone I could think of . . . Hopefully, finally, the . . . governor and mayor will open their eyes to what we really need. We need to say to everyone: You took [the towers] down, we will put them back (on the opposite footprints). No one will beat us — not New Yorkers.”
Daniel Christopher also lost a relative, and a friend since childhood, at the World Trade Center: his brother-inlaw, Dennis Scauso, was also one of 343 firefighters murdered. “I think the best tribute to him and all of the other heroes of that terrible day is to rebuild the Twin Towers . . . to show these evil people that they cannot ever win,” Christopher told me.
Jim Powers is a New York firefighter: “Of course, I speak only for myself,” he wrote to me. “I was there that fateful day, arrived at Vesey St. just before the second tower collapsed. It was horrible, and, believe it or not, that very day . . . I hoped we would be brave enough to put the towers right back where they belong . . . It can and should be done.”
“As a paramedic,” wrote John Feldman, “I responded to the carnage and devastation of 9/11. It broke my heart, and subsequent plans to replace the towers have only rubbed salt in that wound . . . I [have] become ashamed and disgusted at the timid and anemic responses that have been adopted with such fanfare . . . Is it still possible to rebuild the towers?”
Powers and Feldman have company from another first-responder: “My name is Victor DiPierro and I’m a New York City police officer,” one of New York’s Finest wrote. “I was part of 9/11 and, yes, I believe it should be preserved as sacred ground, but I also believe the Towers should be rebuilt. . . . What Gov. Pataki is doing is an injustice to New York . . . .”
And another: “As a former employee of the 1st World Trade Center,” Port Authority Police Sgt. Sean Peters writes, “I can recall how . . . people would arrive on warm sunny days to participate in one of the many scheduled events. Everyone loved the WTC. . . . But the most important reason for rebuilding the Twin Towers is for all the people lost that day. . . . We need to step up and speak for them because they are no longer here to speak for themselves.”
Bob Isaacs worked at the World Trade Center, shortly after its opening until his retirement from the Port Authority in 1999: “To me,” he says, “and to all my Port Authority colleagues, the World Trade Center . . . was our home. On 9/11, I lost many ‘family’ members . . . After the initial shock wore off, I often said . . . that I would like to see the Twin Towers rebuilt. . . .I think that if the so-called Freedom Tower, or some other lame WTC replacement is built, it will signal defeat.”
“I . . . was there for the bombing in ‘93, and was there on 9/11,” writes Charlie Bily, who worked at a financial firm at One World Trade Center. “I lost my best friend along with many other friends. I always felt that the only memorial for them would be to rebuild the towers.”
“I used to work in the south tower,” wrote Eric Fransen. “I knew people who died. I still can’t believe that anyone is taking seriously the thought of building back anything but the towers.”
SO MUCH FOR “CONSENSUS” . . .
