A tragedy

The day started out normal enough.  By the end of the day, so many emotions would swell my mind.  I went to class just as I would in any other day.  A student was late but it was typical of him.  When he walked in the door he had to announce something.  He told us that he heard on the radio that the World Trade Center had been hit by a plane.  Not very many people were willing to speak their minds that day, not at first.  When I realized what was happening, my entire perception of the world immediately changed.
Before 9/11, I had never heard of such a hateful act directed at my country.  Of course I had heard of such things as the holocaust and such but nothing in my time or in my own country that was so devastating.  Intellectually and emotionally I was not really affected but it formed a sense of patriotism in me as it did in the entire country.  No one particularly close to me had been hurt or killed but the sheer magnitude of this event caused me to take a look at my view of the world.  I no longer saw it as a safe and fair world where anyone could prosper.  This world had become dangerous and evil to me. 
The effects of this event were many and varied.  Almost the entire country felt the sense of patriotism that can only come when we must stick together.  There were people who believed that this country deserved this and others who thought it was a big conspiracy by the government.  I believed that the country was attacked by terrorists and it was unjustified.  Perhaps the government did need a wake up call to readdress the foreign policy issues but there is no justification for killing some 2 thousand innocent people.  This country may not be innocent but the people who were killed were.  For this reason, I will not tolerate the attack on our country. 
Over the past four years, the feeling of patriotism has passed but not the memory.  Thousands of people were killed and even more were affected by their deaths.  I will never forgive those men who planned the attack and executed it without regard to anyone or any cause but their own.  I sometimes wonder if George Bush is a good president and I don’t have an answer yet.  I do, however, know that he did the right thing when he declared a war in terrorism.  That is very likely the main reason that he was elected for a second term.  The reelection of George W. shows that the people in this country are as ready to forgive and forget as I am.