Reporter’s Notebook: 9/11 is just a history chapter for a new generation of Americans
It’s faded.Not from decay. Not from neglect. It’s simply the passage of time.The memories are vague. Elusive. Distant. And some who lived it are simply no longer here.Roughly one-third of...
By Fox News · Fox News
It’s faded. Not from decay. Not from neglect. It’s simply the passage of time. The memories are vague. Elusive. Distant. And some who lived it are simply no longer here. Roughly one-third of all Americans who were alive on 9/11 aren’t around anymore to observe the 25th anniversary of that abominable day. And so the recollections of Sept. 11, 2001, are diluted. NEW 9/11 MUSEUM EXHIBIT AIMS TO CONNECT YOUNGER AMERICANS TO THE ATTACKS THROUGH POWERFUL ARTIFACTS To some, Sept. 11 is just another day. But it’s something different for those who weren’t around to live and breathe the horror. To many, 9/11 is like Pearl Harbor Day . Lots of people know about it. They understand it’s what triggered the U.S.’s entry into World War II. But they can’t quite explain much more. The same with other historical-shifting moments. Aug. 6 and 9, 1945 — the days the U.S. bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki, effectively ending World War II. Nov. 22, 1963 — the day a gunman mowed down President John F. Kennedy Jr. in Dallas. A lot of people remember the Space Shuttle Challenger exploding. But few could tell you that it happened on Jan. 28, 1986. The quintessence of 9/11 is the date. Kind of like July 4th. A bit like Jan. 6 and the Capitol riot . However, we were told on Sept. 11, 2001, that things would never be the same. But how can those who didn’t experience it understand what "the same" was like if they never lived it? Just last month, a relative of mine who soon turns 26 asked, "What it was like to fly before 9/11?" I can regale you with stories about myself and a rag-tag group of high school friends, driving to the Cincinnati airport, clearing security and just wandering around the Delta gates, "hanging out" back in the mid-1980s. No ticket. No questions asked. Just a visit to Cinnabon. But the "before times" question about 9/11 is a broader conversation. It’s not just about "what changed" when you take off your shoes and bustle through security to fly. LIZ PEEK: WE CANNOT LET THE LEFT R…