I still remember speaking with you and watching you at the 1993 (USA) National Collegiate Judo Championships in San Francisco. And, after that day over Pennsylvania, your name is always on my lips.
Well done. Well done, all.
I, a mere rokudan, bow to you and remain yours in Judo.
The crew and passengers, herded into the back of the plane, used the onboard phones, and their personal cell phones, to call people on the ground. Learning that other hijackers had just flown jetliners into both towers of the World Trade Center, they held a vote. Unarmed civilians, unbound by duty, they included a college judo champ, a former air-traffic controller, and a retired registered nurse. In an act that has become American lore over the past twenty years, the passengers and crew members chose to attack the knife-wielding hijackers and "retake the plane."
They rushed the first-class cabin, carrying out what the 9/11 Commission's report called a "sustained" assault. One of the plane's data recorders captured "loud thumps, crashes, shouts, and breaking glasses and plates." The hijacker flying the plane, as if to throw the assaulters off balance, rocked the aircraft left and right. One hijacker asked, "Shall we finish it off?" Another said to wait. A passenger shouted, "In the cockpit. If we don't, we'll die!" The hijacker soon asked again, "Shall we put it down?" This time, the answer was yes. The 9/11 Commission concluded that the hijackers "judged that the passengers were only seconds from overcoming them."
...
One passenger's widow recalled that her husband had said, by phone, "We're waiting until we're over a rural area." The authors of the 9/11 Commission's report highlighted the passengers' selflessness: "Their actions saved the lives of countless others, and may have saved either the Capitol or the White House from destruction." The report reached an astonishing conclusion: "the defense of U.S. airspace on 9/11" was "improvised by civilians."
Quote: I wanted to write something in support, but words fail me. May they all rest in peace.
No need for your words nor our words other than, "Thank you." The words here from a then 15 year old giving a Ted Talk are all the words needed for what happened and how to move on.
Why is a 15 year old giving a Ted Talk? It is not due to who her father is and was; it is due to the wisdom carried in her words, wisdom not heard often from those who are several times older. May have all of the other families found such a path forward. May you too find wisdom in Emmy's words:
Parcelpostguy: A mere rokudan??? Well I would call that a lot more than 'mere'. This is a lot of years of sacrifice and dedication behind that red and white belt. This folks sums up the spirit of the martial arts. I bow deeply to you Sir!
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Posted 09/10/2021 5:06 pm
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to all 40.
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