# When will 9/11 become "just another date?" **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 10, 2010, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292 "2010-09-10T14:43:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/21 "2010-09-10T17:39:02Z")
I picked “not in this generation,” but I suppose it’s going to take a couple of them. It’ll fade to just another date when the majority of people living weren’t alive on 9/11/01. Frankly, I would have a hard time remembering when Pearl Harbor was if Arizona didn’t make a point of remembering the USS Arizona in particular. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/22 "2010-09-10T17:39:56Z")
It will never become “just another date” as long as we remember it chiefly _by_ the date. I don’t remember the date of the bombing of Hiroshima, because we call it “the bombing of Hiroshima,” not _checks_ “the August 6th incident.” Similarly, the Ecole Polytechnique massacre is frequently called “le 6 décembre” - the commemorative park is even called “Parc du 6-Décembre-1989” - so the date sticks in your head, even 21 years later. But nobody ever called the Dawson shooting “September 13,” so it’s much more difficult to remember even four years later. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/23 "2010-09-10T17:46:41Z")
Here’s an [interesting article](http://www.cairn.info/revue-mots-2007-3-page-83.htm) (in French): “Quand le 11-Septembre s’approprie le onze septembre” (“when September 11th [the attacks] takes over the 11th of September [the date of the year]”). It quotes a Washington Post poll that says that 95% of Americans remember the date of September 11, _even though 30% do not remember that the attacks took place in 2001._ I’ve long found it provocative that, last year for example, people said, “Today is the 10th anniversary of September 11,” not “today _is_ September 11.” (Idle thought: how do they deal with this in Catalonia, where September 11 is the national holiday? There’s a Parc del Onze de Setembre in Barcelona. I wonder if it’s more common to call the holiday la Diada now?) ---
**Author:** ![Not\_a\_Platypus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d26b3c/32.png) [@Not\_a\_Platypus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Not_a_Platypus)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/24 "2010-09-10T17:49:48Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > For some people never, for some people it is now. Agreed. For me, 9/11 is the anniversary of something else that I celebrate with loved ones every year. I was on the other side of the country and didn’t know anyone in NYC that day, so it had much less of an impact on me. The event I celebrate is always the first thing I think of, while the attack is sort of an afterthought. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/25 "2010-09-10T17:53:22Z")
There are some people in a state not far from here who remember 9/11 for another reason: [Bear Bryant - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bear_Bryant) ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/26 "2010-09-10T18:03:36Z")
> [@matt\_mcl](#): > > I’ve long found it provocative that, last year for example, people said, “Today is the 10th anniversary of September 11,” not “today _is_ September 11.” God. You see? I can’t even do _arithmetic_ right, but I still remember the date of the year. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/27 "2010-09-10T18:32:58Z")
> [@matt\_mcl](#): > > It quotes a Washington Post poll that says that 95% of Americans remember the date of September 11 Wait, so 5% of Americans DON’T know what date 9/11 happened on? ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/28 "2010-09-10T18:35:31Z")
Not until politicians stop exploiting it and using it for a substance substitute or a bogeyman to be afraid of. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/29 "2010-09-10T18:41:47Z")
The same 5% who don’t know the last name of the person buried in Grant’s Tomb. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/848f3c/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_Dunlop)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/30 "2010-09-10T18:52:11Z")
> [@matt\_mcl](#): > > Here’s an [interesting article](http://www.cairn.info/revue-mots-2007-3-page-83.htm) (in French): “Quand le 11-Septembre s’approprie le onze septembre” (“when September 11th [the attacks] takes over the 11th of September [the date of the year]”). It quotes a Washington Post poll that says that 95% of Americans remember the date of September 11, _even though 30% do not remember that the attacks took place in 2001._ > > I’ve long found it provocative that, last year for example, people said, “Today is the 10th anniversary of September 11,” not “today _is_ September 11.” > > (Idle thought: how do they deal with this in Catalonia, where September 11 is the national holiday? There’s a Parc del Onze de Setembre in Barcelona. I wonder if it’s more common to call the holiday la Diada now?) And there were polls showing that a significant number of Americans didn`t know it happened in 2001 even in 2004 or 2005. Can you really say it’s more than just a date just because you remember the day, given that it has always been defined by the day it happened, if have no idea what year it occurred 4 or 9 years later? Obviously on the face of it, it’s not “just another date” to the 95% who know it, but they’re hardly honoring the victims or anything, they can’t even remember when it happened. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/31 "2010-09-10T18:54:33Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Since we don’t remember the Alamo much anymore, though I still know Pearl Harbor Day is December 8th, I’m just wondering. Speak for yourself. March 6 is a very important day in Texas, third only to March 2 and April 21. And Pearl Harbor happened on December 7. I don’t think 9/11 is ever going to fade from our memory. Nor should it. ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/32 "2010-09-10T19:01:22Z")
About 'bout right now? I was in the Pentagon that day, in fact the place hit my old office head on. I’m over it. People that were not involved directly can’t seem to let it go. It chaps my ass that people have gotten permanent disability from being nearby when it happened. But then most people, and maybe this poll is only asking about the twin towers? ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/33 "2010-09-10T19:02:54Z")
> [@Johanna](#): > > The same 5% who don’t know the last name of the person buried in Grant’s Tomb. Nobody is buried in Grant’s tomb. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/34 "2010-09-10T19:19:21Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > “Never” is a long time, so I picked “not in the next generation.” It was a major terrorist attack on a major landmark in a huge city and it was documented extensively on television, the web, and every medium. And to make the date that much more memorable, it’s remembered primary as “9/11” - like if people said “remember December 12” instead of “remember Pearl Harbor” - so I don’t think too many people will forget the date any time soon. GodDAMN, y’all. My uncle Howard would cry if he weren’t, you know, dead. December 7, a day that will live in infamy. 7! ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/35 "2010-09-10T19:20:04Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > > [@Marley23](#): > > > > “Never” is a long time, so I picked “not in the next generation.” It was a major terrorist attack on a major landmark in a huge city and it was documented extensively on television, the web, and every medium. And to make the date that much more memorable, it’s remembered primary as “9/11” - like if people said “remember December 12” instead of “remember Pearl Harbor” - so I don’t think too many people will forget the date any time soon. > > GodDAMN, y’all. My uncle Howard would cry if he weren’t, you know, dead. December 7, a day that will live in infamy. 7! How the hell did I do that? I know it’s December 7. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/36 "2010-09-10T19:31:55Z")
> [@pravnik](#): > > > [@Johanna](#): > > > > The same 5% who don’t know the last name of the person buried in Grant’s Tomb. > > Nobody is buried in Grant’s tomb. 😉 Oh yeah? Then where IS Cary Grant buried, smartass? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/37 "2010-09-10T19:40:52Z")
I think that 9/11 will be remembered by the generations that were old enough for it to have any significance until we die, much like the JFK assassination. I was way too young to remember that, but Bigbro and the older cousins definately do (did). My mom can still tell you (even with memory impairment) what she was doing when she heard the news (JFK) and still gets choked up when she tells you. I do the same when speaking about 9/11. An event that shakes us up as a people tends to affect us differently than personal tragedies. We’re all in the same boat, including the folks who would help you deal with something more personal. ---
**Author:** ![Otara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a88e4f/32.png) [@Otara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otara)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/38 "2010-09-10T21:52:54Z")
You’re talking about a date thats remembered in the same format as the emergency call number. Its going to be a while. Otara ---
**Author:** ![Yorikke](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yorikke/32/4335_2.png) [@Yorikke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorikke)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/39 "2010-09-10T22:32:18Z")
You can’t say “Never,” because it’s simply impossible. Eventually, there won’t be humans to remember it. But not in this century, for sure. Joe ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292/40 "2010-09-10T23:22:56Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > … though I still know Pearl Harbor Day is December 8th … . Where are you celebrating it? Japan? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-9-11-become-just-another-date/553292.md?page=3)