Who Would’ve Thought?

The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon hosted by several cities in Massachusetts. This event first began a year after the success of the first modern day marathon in the 1896 Summer Olympics and is now the world’s oldest annual marathon ranking as one of the world’s best known road races. However, during the Boston Marathon this year on April 15th, 2013, two pressure cooker bombs detonated killing three people and injuring many, triggering a massive manhunt for the bombers. Three days after the tragic explosions set off, photographs and surveillance videos were released by the FBI of two suspects soon identified as the notorious brothers Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev. On the morning of April 19, 2013 in Watertown, Massachusetts, Tamerlan became involved in a shootout with police where he was shot and captured. According to those police officers involved in the shootout, his brother, Dzhokhar, ran him over with an SUV and dragged him with the vehicle for twenty feet leading to an even greater manhunt for the one single suspect. I assume this was so his brother would not be captured and questioned and would just be dead. That’s just me though. Anyways, during this manhunt on the evening of April 19, Dzhokhar was discovered wounded in a boat in the backyard of a very unlucky resident in Watertown, Massachusetts less than a quarter mile from where he abandoned the SUV.

In my opinion, and most likely every other American citizens’ opinion, the Boston Marathon Bombing was a very horrific tragedy. Another thing I take out of this whole travesty is, why were there not more precautions? After 9/11, safety was a huge issue but somehow, it dwindled to the point where it was almost forgotten which seemed to be the case at the marathon. These two men casually walked the streets with seemingly meaningless backpacks that were, in reality, carrying bombs that they would aimlessly place in random places. I believe if there was security placed evenly around the marathon’s route that the suspicious bags would have been noticed and taken care of before any catastrophes could occur. Nevertheless, I believe a smidge of goodness came out of this; although there were way more negatives about the Boston Bombing, proven above, than positives, the fact that these explosions allowed kind hearted people to come to the rescue of wounded runners or observers is a somewhat pleasant side to this disaster. Every little thing that happened, good and bad, allowed America to come together as a nation in remembrance of the lives lost and to show remorse towards the wounded victims. All in all, the Boston Bombing was a terroristic event very despised by not only me but by mostly all American.  My last question is based towards the two bombers, even though I know they will never answer it but, how could you look at a little boy and think ‘I’m going to kill you’ and not have a bit of guilt or remorse?

~Daniielle Dietrich

9/11/01: Never forget, Never surrender.

As you know, it is the 10 year anniversary of the tragic 9/11. On this day, American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the north tower of the Words Trade Center in New York. Only minutes later, a second plane crashed into the south tower. Not to long after that, a third plane crashed into the western wall of the Pentagon in Washington D.C.. The tragedy affected many people throughout the United States, leaving many, many people wondering “why would someone want something this bad to happen to us?”.

To me, this was only my second day of pre-school. I was only three and I had no idea why everybody was depressed when I got home. I had no idea of what was unfolding miles and miles away. Personally, I had a great day at school. However, I noticed many of my classmates leaving school early. I was not worried for I had family working/learning at school. It was only a half day and when my mom came to pick me up in the parking lot I heard a lot of mumbled words like terrorist and pentagon: words I have never even heard of before. I will never forget that day? What was your experience on that day?

~Joe McCarthy

Remembering 9/11

If you have recently tuned into the news, you probably know about the completion of the 9/11 memorial. This memorial consists of a reflecting pool and a wall to honor the men and women who lost their lives that day. The memorial has been placed directly were the World Trade Center once stood. Specifically at Ground Zero.

Multiple commercial jets were overtaken by terrorists in the Al Qaeda group, led by Osama Bin Laden. This group targeted the twin towers and crashed the 2 commercial jets directly into the towers, which soon crumbled to the ground. 1000’s of lives were lost during that 1 attack. A small time later, another jet came into contact with the Pentagon. Which also caused the deaths of many. The last plane was rumored to have been targeting either the White House or the Capital Building. However,  the 2 buildings were saved by a few brave men aboard the plane which thrashed out at the terrorists, which I thought was amazing, then they tried to land the plane, but crashed.

Now in New york, stands the beautiful reflecting pool and the memorial wall. On the 10 year anniversary of the attack, people fill the grounds to mourn the loss of loved ones. I think that building a memorial was a great idea, because the people who died that day deserved some sort of recognition, and the reflecting pool was a great add-on. Although it may have made people feel worse because they had to remember the dreadful day, depending on the person, it is a meaningful memorial.  Overall, I do think that the anniversary project was good for New York, it made it look good, and it helped the city feel remembered.

~Alex Shoop

Just Like The Jets Beat The Cowboys, The United States Is Beating Terrorism on 9/11

The New York Jets victory caps numerous tributes on the 10th university of 9/11. Coach Rex Ryan wanted a win badly the first game of the season of 2011. He got lucky when Nick Folk nailed a 50 yard field goal to put them up by 3 at the end of the game. The Jets went on to win after this energy boost by a score of  27-24. This day (9/11) American flags spread the fields of every team NFL team. In addition the Jets did warm ups in navy blue Ts with the words “never forgotten” on the back to remember 9/11. On game day there were bomb sniffing dogs at the stadium to make sure no one one would ruin such a special night. After the many ways that 9/11 was remembered that night the Jets went on to win a very emotional game.

This was a great win for the Jets on a very emotional day. I also think it was great for every team to spread an American on all the fields on the anniversary of 9/11. I personally love the Jets and admired the hard fought win at home. I was pleased on the effort and heart the players showed on both sides of the field. It just seemed like the Jets wanted it more and the score showed it on a hard fought game.

~David Moran