Six Years Ago, In Massachusetts

Logan Airport, two local flights, Massport, security, some hotel rooms at the Park Inn in Newton--they all played a role in the 9/11 plot. And yet, Massachusetts seems as distant from the attacks at Missouri or Montana. Why?

That's the question I ask in the Boston Herald today.

UPDATE: Diane in New Hampshire sends this terrific email on the subject:

This "disconnect" is something my husband and I talked alot about that first year after 9/11 because we were perplexed by it and could never really figure it out.

I think two factors contributed to this: 1) a sense of shame and 2) lack of recognition from media, gov't, etc.

The two planes that flew into the WTC towers came from Boston. Those were the most high-profile hijackings that day because the attacks unfolded on live television. I know one of my first thoughts was "What the hell is going on at Logan??"

I honestly feel that there was, from very early on, an unspoken underlying sense of shame and embarassment that two of those aircraft came from Boston. It's horrifying to accept that this plot unfolded here.

The second thing that happened was that in comments in the media and from gov't "officials", there was a complete LACK of recognition about how deeply Massachusetts was affected by 9/11. As you recall, the phrase is always, "...the tragedy in New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania...."

I understand that United flight 93 crashed in PA, so that location is sacred ground, particularly for their families. But it really had nothing to do with people of Pennsylvania per se. The plane could have just as easily crashed in Maryland, for example. But they NEVER mention Boston or Mass when they talk about "the tragedy".

If you look at a list of the passengers on those flights and their hometowns, and then get out a local map, you will see that practically every community across the greater Boston area lost someone....from Boston, Dracut, Wellesly, Newton, Needham, Sudbury, Framingham, Acton, Hudson, Wayland, Chelmsford, Brookline...

I just feel that Massachusetts has never been given full "recognition", if you will, for its trauma.

So that, combined with the shame, has resulted in the weird disconnect.

Thanks for talking about this, because I gave it alot of thought at one time,
and I'm glad to hear that others did too.