Listening to the Government, by Chris Henderson

Special to TLE

Now that months have passed since the horrific attack on America and our national numbness and shock are giving way to well deserved anger and reflection; we need to ask ourselves the question of why three plane loads of people stood by while their planes were being hijacked.

Many people may try to rationalize the situation by saying, "The passengers had no idea they would be killed. After all other hijackings just ended up with the plane safely on the ground in some foreign nation." That is beside the point. Not even a "regular" hijacking should be so accepted as to have the victims just sit by and do nothing.

The point is that for decades the mindset of the American public has been corrupted when it comes to crime and criminals. The Sarah Brady's, Charles Schumer's, Ted Kennedy's, Bill Clinton's, Dianne Feinstein's and every other victim disarmament proponent of the world told Americans that we citizens should never fight back. These politicians and lawmakers told Americans that it was not the citizen's duty to fight back against crime or criminals. These politicians and lawmakers told us that it was better for us to be rapped, robbed or hijacked than to fight back. They told us that we citizens were too stupid and incompetent to be able to use any form of reliable self-defense. "It's better to cooperate with the bad guys," they said. "You'll only get hurt if you resist," was their mantra. They told us we should just dial 911 and wait to be rescued by the police. They told us it was for our own good.

And most Americans listened.

These same politicians and lawmakers made an airplane the most extreme example of a "gun free zone" in the world. These politicians and lawmakers practically invited criminals to come aboard planes since criminals prefer unarmed victims. (Ask yourself this: When was the last time you heard of a police station getting hijacked?) These politicians and lawmakers promised Americans, including the victims of September 11th, that the massive government they had created would protect them. They told those victims that the FAA, FBI, INS, (and all the other alphabet soup of 3-lettered agencies) along with all the restrictive laws they wrote, would magically make the world a better and safer place. They told us it was for our own good.

And most Americans listened.

These same politicians and lawmakers told Americans that we were safe because we had a large offensive military instead of an effective defensive military. They told us that we citizens didn't need to concern ourselves with what is going on in other nations around the world. They told us that all that really matter was here at home. They even insulted us with a catch phrase to drill home that point. "It's the economy stupid," they said. We should have known what they thought of us when they called us "stupid" but most people just overlooked that insult as these politicians and lawmakers said that all we should ever worry about was what went on in our own backyard. "Don't worry about what goes on overseas," they said. They told us it was for our own good.

And most Americans listened.

The heroes of that fourth plane on Flight 93, however, didn't listen to the politicians and lawmakers. They listened to their hearts, heads and to their loved ones on their cell phones. And when they heard what was going on with the other 3 planes, they realized that all those years the politicians and lawmakers had been lying to them.

Every September 11th should be a time of reflection for Americans to remember and honor all the heroes that were created on that day. But every September 11th should also be a time for every politician and lawmaker responsible for making America so vulnerable to hang their heads in shame.

From now on, whenever the politicians and lawmakers tell us they are doing something for our own good, perhaps we just shouldn't listen to them.

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