September
2002
From
the Editor: September
will be a tough month for Americans
My
fiancé, Amy-now my wife-was sitting on the patio at Mercer
Oaks Golf Club in West Windsor. My best friend, who was a medical
resident in the Bronx at the time, was down for a weekday morning
round of golf. Little did we know that sometime around the third
hole, one of the planes that crashed into the World Trade Center
more or less circled over our head.
So my wife was sitting on the patio, dressed in the clothes she
had worn to work. The first reaction is, wow, it's nice to see
her. The second reaction, especially when she's not smiling, is,
Oh no.
We had played a round of golf while the world watched in horror.
You have to know that when someone says "someone bombed the
Twin Towers and the Pentagon…the Twin Towers are gone"…well,
you have to ask them to repeat it.
We drove home in a daze and sat transfixed like…well, you
don't need me to tell you what it was like. I had an appointment
with Roland Pott of Conduit, to interview him about the opening
of the music club. I called him and left a message; if he wanted,
I would postpone the interview.
Roland called back a little later. "I don't have any reason
to postpone the interview unless you need to," he said. Like
every other restaurateur and businessperson, he had a responsibility
to keep things running.
So Amy and I turned off the television and its unstoppable images,
Ashleigh Banfield and Aaron Brown and Shepard Smith, and took
a ride down to South Broad Street and parked near the courthouse,
where police guarded the front door. Maybe it's easy to forget
the fear of that day, but the mindset was almost the same as if
you're driving in a snowstorm-you feel like there's danger around
the corner and the air feels close.
We conducted a somber interview. Amy and I took a preview walking
tour of Conduit. Roland was clearly excited about opening the
club, but every time he answered a question, it seemed to need
qualifying. I don't know how today's events are going to affect
things, but…
You're saying, It can't be a whole year since September 11. That's
what we say this month, because the reminders are vivid and everywhere.
And yet, September 11, 2001 really is way, way in the distance.
We quickly adjusted to the changes in our lives-such as heightened
security at airports and-well, hmm. What have the other changes
been?
Just because I can't think of one doesn't mean there haven't been
any. But frankly, I see very little in the infrastructure of this
country that has truly changed as a result of last year's exploitation
of our national weaknesses. There are a few more military uniforms
on display. That's about it.
Now, I don't want my life to change. I've been one of the people
arguing that it was important to guard against overreaction. We
Americans have lived in a dream world compared to much of the
planet, and it's important not to let the nightmares overtake
us. There are always going to be nightmares.
But at the same time, it seems unlikely that if something like
this should happen again, we'll be protected from it. For all
the "heightened security at the Golden Gate Bridge"
and "foiled dirty bombers," I can't say I have complete
confidence that the next time terrorists target the American homeland,
there won't be more gross tragedy.
That, I think, is what's going to make this month difficult. Not
just that we are remembering the losses from the past. But that
almost every one of us expects more serious losses in the future.
*
* *
I can't help but feel clichéd, writing things like this,
writing a September 11 column at all. But this is just one of
a million that will be written in newspapers, magazines, newsletters
and Web sites this month.
I would have been remiss in not writing something. It's been on
my mind, I can't help it. Last month there was a small fire at
the Marriott, and South Warren Street was full of fire trucks,
ambulances and police cars. A FOX News chopper hovered noisily
overhead.
I had flashbacks. I immediately felt very uncomfortable, like
it was September 11 again, and I was in New York. I wasn't there,
of course, but all the hours I spent viewing on television the
grisly and disturbing scenes of that day have evidently had a
long-term psychological effect. And I pride myself on not being
susceptible to psychological effects.
Note, however, that this is the only place in this newspaper that
you'll find a reference to the events of that day. Things will
be subdued this month, but there's no time to take a break and
contemplate the past. Trenton's got things going on, and we've
got to keep them going on, no matter what happens.
True progress brakes for nothing.
# # #
-Joe
Emanski
