9/11 questions...

Off Topic
1

I am doing a piece of university work and need some help. Could you please. if you have the time, take ten minutes to answer the questions below.

When you answer could you please state you age, gender and occupation as well.

Thanks in advance.

1.) When did you first become aware of the attacks?

2.) How did you become aware of the attacks?

3.) Did you watch them as they occurred? If so how?

4.) How did you feel about them as you watched them?

5.) How did you feel later that day after you had got over the initial shock?

6.) At the time did you feel as if you were watching history occur?

7.) Did the attacks seem like they were happening far away like earthquakes and famines in third world countries or did they feel like something that would have a direct affect on your life?

8.) Has 9/11 had an effect on your life.

9.) Do you think that 9/11 happened in a European country or in the Middle East that it would have been perceived the same way?

10.) How do you feel about the attacks nowadays?

  1. Do you think the world as a whole has changed since 9/11?
2

1.) When did you first become aware of the attacks?

About 9:30 on the 11th. I had just come out of my Cognitive Psychology class.

2.) How did you become aware of the attacks?

My officemate told me about them when I went up to drop off my stuff.

3.) Did you watch them as they occurred? If so how?

I spent the next four hours glued to the TV and trying to get in touch with friends and family–particularly the friend with an office in the Pentagon.

4.) How did you feel about them as you watched them?

Kind of hard to answer. Sick, horrified, angry.

5.) How did you feel later that day after you had got over the initial shock?

I don’t think I got over the shock that day. I still felt sick, horrified, and angry. I also remember being much more aware of the noise of airplanes flying overhead and especially at low altitude as they took off or landed over the next week or so.

6.) At the time did you feel as if you were watching history occur?

Absolutely. This was something that was completely unprecedented in US history.

7.) Did the attacks seem like they were happening far away like earthquakes and famines in third world countries or did they feel like something that would have a direct affect on your life?

Definitely something that had a direct effect on my life. One of my best friends had an office in the section of the Pentagon where the plane hit. Fortunately he was out of the office that day, but the worry until I heard from him about eight hours after the attack was pretty bad.

8.) Has 9/11 had an effect on your life.

I’m currently a defense contractor working on airport screening equipment for TSA. 9/11 has had a huge effect on my life (as have the shoe bomber and the moron who shipped himself to his parents via FedEx).

9.) Do you think that 9/11 happened in a European country or in the Middle East that it would have been perceived the same way?

Probably not–or at least not here. One of the central illusions of American life is that being surrounded by two oceans and two friendly neighbors makes us essentially insulated from terrorism or war. It’s the type of thing we think of on some fundamental level as only happening elsewhere.

10.) How do you feel about the attacks nowadays?

Again, tough to answer. I still feel sickened, horrified, and angry when I think about them; I just spend less time thinking about them now than I did two years ago.

11) Do you think the world as a whole has changed since 9/11?

Absolutely. We’ve embarked on two wars for regime change that probably wouldn’t have happened were it not for 9/11. We’ve also started taking security much more seriously in venues ranging from airports to ballparks to the DMV.

3

Male, 31, Teacher

1.) When did you first become aware of the attacks?

Sometime right after the second plane hit.

2.) How did you become aware of the attacks?
My wife called the school and had them take a message to me. It said, “two planes struck world trade center” . They lady who brought it wasn’t the smartest woman, and I assumed it was one plane and an accident. Then about 15 minutes later another teacher stuck his head in and said the pentagon had been hit.

3.) Did you watch them as they occurred? If so how? I saw the second tower fall. I had a television rolled into the class and we could barely pick up ABC.

4.) How did you feel about them as you watched them?

It was a mixture of sadness, helplessness, and anger

5.) How did you feel later that day after you had got over the initial shock?

Angry

6.) At the time did you feel as if you were watching history occur?

Of course

7.) Did the attacks seem like they were happening far away like earthquakes and famines in third world countries or did they feel like something that would have a direct affect on your life?

It definitely felt like it was impacting my life. Most of my fellow teachers are from the Northeast (two lost brothers), and I was still in the Army Reserve. People kept stopping in my room and asking if I was going to be called up.

8.) Has 9/11 had an effect on your life.

It has affected my outlook on the world, but no real direct effects.

9.) Do you think that 9/11 happened in a European country or in the Middle East that it would have been perceived the same way?

Not by me. I wouldn’t have taken it personally. It would have seemed more like the earthquake in Iran. Sad, but life goes on.

10.) How do you feel about the attacks nowadays?

Angry.

  1. Do you think the world as a whole has changed since 9/11?

Not enough. There are still too many people capable of hurting us who wish to do so. We have the means to wipe them off of the planet but we haven’t been aggressive enough.

4

1.) When did you first become aware of the attacks?

I was getting ready to celebrate my birthday (9/6) at Sea World

2.) How did you become aware of the attacks?

Drinking coffee, watching the morning news, waiting for my wife to get ready to go.

3.) Did you watch them as they occurred? If so how?

I tuned in just as the 2nd plane hit.

4.) How did you feel about them as you watched them?

First, shock and disbelief. Then helplessness.

5.) How did you feel later that day after you had got over the initial shock?

The shock didn’t really wear off. Kinda wandered around aimlessly. My wife was crying. I was kinda numb.

6.) At the time did you feel as if you were watching history occur?

Yes. Like when the old timers talk about JFK getting shot.

7.) Did the attacks seem like they were happening far away like earthquakes and famines in third world countries or did they feel like something that would have a direct affect on your life?

I have family in Jersey. My wife has family in D.C. It didn’t feel far away.

8.) Has 9/11 had an effect on your life.

A little. I don’t bitch when I have to wait at the airport.

9.) Do you think that 9/11 happened in a European country or in the Middle East that it would have been perceived the same way?

I don’t think it would have been so impactful because of the U.S. reputation of first being untouchable and then being hit.

10.) How do you feel about the attacks nowadays?

I think it could happen again but I’m not gonna live in fear of it.

  1. Do you think the world as a whole has changed since 9/11?

Yes, I think it has changed. People used to take a lot of things for granted, not so much now.

5

1.) When did you first become aware of the attacks?

9:30 AM. I was in grade 9, in the hall going to science class, when I saw that on the stairway, no one was moving, and there was an administrator at the front, explaining what happened.

2.) How did you become aware of the attacks?

Administrator explained what happened.

3.) Did you watch them as they occurred? If so how?

Didn’t watch it, there was no TV available, but listened to it on the radio (that’s all we did in all of my classes)

4.) How did you feel about them as you watched them?

Horrified! My science teacher scared me saying that this could possibly start a WWIII. Being a Jew and knowing what I know about WWII and the Holocaust, you can imagine my fear.

5.) How did you feel later that day after you had got over the initial shock?

I didn’t get over it on the same day.

6.) At the time did you feel as if you were watching history occur?

Yes. I felt that this would be the defining moment of my generation. The previous generation had the JFK assassination, the generation before that had D-day, and my generation has 9/11

7.) Did the attacks seem like they were happening far away like earthquakes and famines in third world countries or did they feel like something that would have a direct affect on your life?

It really felt like it would have a direct effect on my life (ie upsurge of Anti-Semitism).

8.) Has 9/11 had an effect on your life.

Surprisingly, no

9.) Do you think that 9/11 happened in a European country or in the Middle East that it would have been perceived the same way?

Not at all. The States are a superpower, so naturally, it’s a bigger deal if it happens there than anywhere else.

10.) How do you feel about the attacks nowadays?

Nowadays, I don’t think about it at all. I was surprised and ashamed at my insensitivity that on the 13th of september I no longer had the fear that I had on 9/11.

  1. Do you think the world as a whole has changed since 9/11?

Yes. I think that without 9/11 we wouldn’t have had the war on Afghanistan and Iraq.

6

what’s 9/11?

7

31, M - I was at the Pentagon. Feel free to PM me if you’d like to talk.

1.) When did you first become aware of the attacks? 2.) How did you become aware of the attacks?

On the CNN website just after the first plane impacted.

3.) Did you watch them as they occurred? If so how?
I saw the second plane hit on TV. For us, I was walking towards one of the courtyard doors, when I saw everyone freeze for a couple seconds, then scatter. I remember 3 people running for the courtyard, everyone else was coming towards me.

4.) How did you feel about them as you watched them?
In total shock for the WTC. We knew it was an attack as soon as we saw the second plane hit. For us, I couldn’t believe what was happening. Just when I got out the doors, I heard the sound of a low flying jet and thought that was the second plane coming in. I only hoped I could get far enough away from the duilding before it’d hit. Part of me was still processing everything that was happening and part of me was amazed. I was talking with a few people after the second plane hit the WTC and we were saying how we could be next…then 10 min later I’m outside watching a column of smoke coming from my building and hearing secondary explosions. Talk about surreal.

5.) How did you feel later that day after you had got over the initial shock?

Heh. The shock didn’t wear off for several weeks. When I was coming home that day, I was listening to the radio and thinking that my recovery was going to really suck. I had no idea how much worse it was actually going to be.

6.) At the time did you feel as if you were watching history occur?
Yup. When I listened to the radio and heard the comparisions to Pearl Harbor, I started laughing. We forgot the lessons from that, and the same will happen in this case, until another attack occurs and the comparisons start again.

8.) Has 9/11 had an effect on your life.
Fark yeah, it did. If the plane hit my side of the building then I’d be dead right now. Whenever the alert goes to ‘Orange’ and people make jokes or sarcastic comments, I’m wondering if I’ll still be alive by the end of the week. I’m almost a completely different person than before - both good and bad. I can also empathise whenever I hear war vets talk about their experiences.
“Surreal” is a good description overall, I think. Never in my life would I ever thought I’d say that I survived a terrorist attack and its aftermath. Not to mention being in a building hit by a plane. WTF.

9.) Do you think that 9/11 happened in a European country or in the Middle East that it would have been perceived the same way? Not sure. People might have been freaked out by planes for a bit, but I think our reaction would be similar to what another poster compared to the Iran earthquake.

10.) How do you feel about the attacks nowadays? Mixed. Still angry that it could have been forgotten here so quickly. The person who I was died that day, along with the others yet I find that most people expect me to be “over it” by now when in reality it’s something I’ll always live with. It’s given me a greater appreciation for life, though. Some days it hits me that I’m still alive to experience a particular moment, and I can’t explain how amazing that feels.

11) Do you think the world as a whole has changed since 9/11?

Yes and no. The U.S. has put itself in the Middle East and changed the geopolitical landscape there, which has had an effect on the rest of the world, especially Europe, which is still recovering from the Iraqi war pro/con war split. Would I say most people don’t take things for granted? Nope. I think things are back to the way they were in that sense.

8

1.) When did you first become aware of the attacks?

When I woke up on the morning of the attacks.

2.) How did you become aware of the attacks?

My mother was watching television and she told me that someone had piloted their planes to crash into buildings in New York city.

3.) Did you watch them as they occurred? If so how?

No, I watched the replay.

4.) How did you feel about them as you watched them?

When I saw the footage I remember thinking “How could that happen?”
They also showed footage of people jumping out of the buildings to their death and that gave me a sick feeling in my gut.

5.) How did you feel later that day after you had got over the initial shock?

I just got on with my everyday activities as I wasn’t in the US and had no immediate family in the US, it didn’t affect me as deeply as it did for some people although I felt remorse for the victims.

6.) At the time did you feel as if you were watching history occur?

No, I didn’t think about that.

7.) Did the attacks seem like they were happening far away like earthquakes and famines in third world countries or did they feel like something that would have a direct affect on your life?

It felt far away.

8.) Has 9/11 had an effect on your life.

No.

9.) Do you think that 9/11 happened in a European country or in the Middle East that it would have been perceived the same way?

No way. If it happened in the Middle East, most people in Western society probably wouldn’t even know about it.

10.) How do you feel about the attacks nowadays?

I feel it was a real eye opener for me and most other people who didn’t realise how vulnerable we are to terrorism.

  1. Do you think the world as a whole has changed since 9/11?

Other than increased security measures, no. For a while it brought people closer together, but not so much now.

9

1.) When did you first become aware of the attacks?

I think on the 13th or so.

2.) How did you become aware of the attacks?

One of the guys in my hunting camp heard about it from a guy that has just ridden into the wilderness that day.

3.) Did you watch them as they occurred? If so how?

n/a

4.) How did you feel about them as you watched them?

I saw tapes a week later. I was awestruck at the devestation.

5.) How did you feel later that day after you had got over the initial shock?

Pissed off. I wanted to see some shit blow up in retaliation.

6.) At the time did you feel as if you were watching history occur?

Yes.

7.) Did the attacks seem like they were happening far away like earthquakes and famines in third world countries or did they feel like something that would have a direct affect on your life?

More detached like an earthquake far away.

8.) Has 9/11 had an effect on your life.

Not in any huge way. It reinforced some of my beliefs about the world and my fellow countrymen (and women).

9.) Do you think that 9/11 happened in a European country or in the Middle East that it would have been perceived the same way?

By the citizens of that country, yes, by the US, no.

10.) How do you feel about the attacks nowadays?

I’m still waiting to see Bin Laden’s head on a pike in Times Square.

  1. Do you think the world as a whole has changed since 9/11?

Not in any substansive way. A couple of countries are quite a bit different but that’s about it.

10

Oh, add Male, 44, powerplant operator to mine.

11

I missed the age, gender, occupation question, too. Male, 27, defense contractor. I was finishing up my Master’s and teaching Freshman English at Virginia Tech at the time of the attacks.

12

I lost my brother at the towers.

13

1.) When did you first become aware of the attacks? about 10 minutes after the first plane hit

2.) How did you become aware of the attacks? radio report

3.) Did you watch them as they occurred? yes If so how? webfeed

4.) How did you feel about them as you watched them? sick to my stomach, in disbelief

5.) How did you feel later that day after you had got over the initial shock? enraged, helpless

6.) At the time did you feel as if you were watching history occur? no, didn’t think about it in that context

7.) Did the attacks seem like they were happening far away like earthquakes and famines in third world countries or did they feel like something that would have a direct affect on your life?
i knew it would change our way of life from that point on

8.) Has 9/11 had an effect on your life. yes, I think about it everyday

9.) Do you think that 9/11 happened in a European country or in the Middle East that it would have been perceived the same way? no

10.) How do you feel about the attacks nowadays? i compare them to the 9/11 incidents

  1. Do you think the world as a whole has changed since 9/11? no