I am Very Pissed Off. Pissed off with my fellow Melburnians for not paying some sort of homage to the victims and survivors of last years tragedy in the US.
On my way to work this morning, I stood at the steps of Flinders St. Station for a few minutes…from 8.30 am until 8.55 am actually, because I knew that there was going to be some sort of recognition of the Sept. 11 events.
At 8.47 am, right on the knocker, the bells of St. Pauls Cathedral began their mournful peel, and I could hear the fire sirens from Eastern Hill in the distance. There were a few of us at Flinders St. who just stood, and thought, and prayed. Some had tears in their eyes, some just looked resigned to the horrible way the world has turned out. Me, I was watching the doves and pidgeons fluttering around the spires of this Anglican cathedral, and I found solace in the absolute mundane normalcy of their winging.
But the trams and trains and buses and trucks and cars continued to rattle and rev their way through this very busy intersection. Many people, commuters on their way to work in the CBD seemed puzzled by the ‘impromptu’ bell ringing, but did not stop to think too much more about it. It disappointed me, nay, it actually pissed me right off that people/car drivers/ the public transport corporation could not even concede a quiet time for rememberance of this tragic day.
I know life goes on, and I know that many people do not want to remember, and I know that we are geographically far removed from the intense pain that Americans and particularly New Yorkers are feeling at this time, but still, it pissed me off.
Except for the guy who was wandering up Collins Street wearing a tattered and obviously well loved “I LOVE NY” t-shirt. Good on’ ya mate. You made me feel a belated pride in my home town.
To be honest kambuckta, I think a lot of Aussies in all cities were expecting any memorial/commemorative happenings to take place tomorrow. It seemed very odd to me that so much stuff we organised as “anniversary” stuff was occuring today. This time a year ago the events of that dreadful day were still several hours away from happening.
It’s one thing for us to get a head start on New Year’s Eve, but it felt kind of “icky” us jumping the gun on memorial and other commemorative events this time around just because our September 11 rolls around before the rest of the world’s.
That said, I saw footage of what took place in Melbourne and you did us proud.
kambuckta, thank you. As an American (and a journalist who has currently gone 23 hours without sleep in case something goes down on this dreadful anniversary), I am tremendously heartened to hear a foreigner sympathizing with us this way. This was an attack on the free world that happened to hit America.
I’m not a New Yorker (though my ancestors were some of the city’s founders), but the attacks have affected me profoundly, and will I suspect continue to do so. Thanks for your sympathy and for speaking up about it.
kambuckta, thank you also, for your remembrance. But please don’t be too angry at your fellow Melburnians for not apparently observing the minute of silence. Even here in the tri-state area, I expect traffic will keep moving and commuters will keep going. Some will realize the time and think whatever thoughts will go through their minds about that time one year ago. For others, that moment will pass by them before they even realize it. Perhaps they meant to stop, perhaps not.
You expected everyone in the CBD to have a moment of silence simultaneously?! My dear, it’s hard enough getting people in the same parade to hold a minute of silence at the gay pride parade every year. It’s an admirable thought, but I don’t think you should be too surprised it didn’t work.
I wasn’t driving this morning (nor was I in Melbourne for that matter), but otherwise it could well have been me pissing off Kambuckta this morning.
But to be honest, I never realised that 8:47am was meant to be a special time to mourn. Doesn’t 8:47am September 11 Melbourne = 5:47pm September 10 in NYC?
While I sympathise with all American Dopers, and did send a quiet thought or two towards the US yesterday, I don’t agree, Kambuckta. Not everyone perhaps wants to remember, not everone thinks it was as big a deal as you obviously do, not everyone wants to remember the way you do.
I cared. I sent thoughts when I was able. I didn’t feel as though I had to send those thoughtsat a certain time to make them meaningful.
I was in an exam at that time. I wasn’t prepared to fail a subject for a ‘feel-good’ measure to make everyone happy. I did my own personal thinking on the matter when it suited me. I disagree that everyone should’ve done it when you thought they should. I think it’s fairly unreasonable to expect everyone to feel the way you do and want to ‘remember’ the way you do.
I think we’re so used to ANZAC Day and Rememberance Day being observed in very ritualised ways and at symbolic times which are etched into our awareness that we forget those commemorations have taken decades to evolve the form in which we observe them today.
While many people expected that the major Australian and New Zealand cities would dosomething to mark the day, many of us were also avoiding TV, radio, and newspapers like the plague and simply assumed that any such gestures of solidarity would be made at the times the events happened. It simply didn’t occur to us that the clock would be “rolled forward”, as it were.
Next year, those wishing to participate will have a clearer idea of the structure and timing of any future commemorations of September 11.
I don’t think kambuckta meant to imply that people should observe the day in a specific way, but rather that unpreparedness for the formal observation occuring when it did led to people’s reactions being ones which could be interpreted as callous indifference.
We had a minutes silence at work to remember which was good but it felt strange to go straight from that into a heated discussion about advertising spends.
Leechboy and I watched some of the documentary’s last night and for the most part they were very moving. It was good to be with someone I loved and to remember how much we have and how lucky we are.
My SIL however held her craft group meeting at our place last night and I really got upset with her for continually breaking into our viewing with discussions about “fat quarters” and quilting patterns. Got to the point where she even upset leechboy by standing infront of the TV during one of the memorials, continually talking and trying to pick out the picture of a fire fighter who died on 9-11 becuase she is making a quilt for his family. Its a nice thing she’s doing (making the quilt) but please could she have shown a little more respect.
Did anybody see the television “re-enactment” of one of the plane crashes? I think it was channel 7 or channel 9. I didn’t see it myself, but from what I’ve heard it was a very tacky production.
I saw that briefly Kayeby and holy shit it was tacky :(. I was channel grazing while the primaflorets were out of the room and happened on that.
I haven’t been in the city on November 11 – does it come to a complete standstill? I remember the moment of silence when I used to work in a building beside Anzac Square.
