WEBVTT - What Could Have Been

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<v Speaker 1>Good morning, peeps, and welcome to willk F Daily with

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<v Speaker 1>Meet Your Girl Danielle Moody, recording live from our pod

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<v Speaker 1>stream studios in Times Square. Folks, over the weekend we

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<v Speaker 1>recognize the twentieth anniversary of nine to eleven, and over

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<v Speaker 1>the weekend and I'm sure for the rest of the

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<v Speaker 1>month we will see segments, read articles, videos, documentaries on

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<v Speaker 1>nine to eleven where we were and what has happened.

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<v Speaker 1>And I want to take today's episode to have my

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<v Speaker 1>own remembrance, which I'm sure we'll conjure memories of your own,

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<v Speaker 1>and to think about how much our world was transformed

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<v Speaker 1>over the last twenty years, all of the things that

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<v Speaker 1>have happened that prior to September eleventh, two thousand and one,

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<v Speaker 1>we would have never thought could happen in this country.

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<v Speaker 1>We believed prior to nine to eleven that our borders

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<v Speaker 1>right at our oceans separated us from quote unquote the

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<v Speaker 1>bad people. That it wasn't you know for decades, Pearl

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<v Speaker 1>Harbor being one of the only major attacks that we

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<v Speaker 1>had ever seen in America throughout my entire lifetime, war

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<v Speaker 1>or acts of war and acts of terror and violence

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<v Speaker 1>were something that happened someplace else. They didn't happen in

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<v Speaker 1>the United States. And even though we had our Timothy

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<v Speaker 1>mcvays and would have our bombs in nineteen ninety six

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<v Speaker 1>in Atlanta at the Olympics, those were kind of few

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<v Speaker 1>and far between. To think about this nine to eleven,

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<v Speaker 1>twenty eighth year anniversary, on the backdrop of just having

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<v Speaker 1>withdrawal from Afghanistan, to think about the thirteen troops military

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<v Speaker 1>personnel that were killed at Kabul at the airport, the

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<v Speaker 1>oldest being twenty three. They were toddlers, and some of

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<v Speaker 1>them weren't even born when nine to eleven happened, and

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<v Speaker 1>yet they were sent to defend a war that we've

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<v Speaker 1>been fighting for twenty years. I think about what life

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<v Speaker 1>was like before, and twenty years is a long time

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<v Speaker 1>to kind of remember when we felt safer, when we

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<v Speaker 1>weren't surveiled, where we watched shows and movies that featured terrorists,

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<v Speaker 1>but it wasn't anything that we ever experienced in our

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<v Speaker 1>own day to day lives. So I want to bring

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<v Speaker 1>you back to where I was on September eleventh, two

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<v Speaker 1>thousand and one, and things that I remember bubbling through

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<v Speaker 1>my mind and kind of excitement that I had for

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<v Speaker 1>the future, and then all of that excitement turning into fear.

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<v Speaker 1>So September eleventh, two thousand and one, a couple of

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<v Speaker 1>months prior, I had just graduated from college and was

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<v Speaker 1>so excited. My whole life was in front of me.

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<v Speaker 1>What would I do? Where would I go? Well, first off,

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<v Speaker 1>I was going to be setting off on a flight

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<v Speaker 1>to Europe for the next three months to travel around

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<v Speaker 1>the world. That was my gift that my parents had

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<v Speaker 1>given me for graduation to do so with my best friend,

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<v Speaker 1>and our flight was to take off on September thirteenth.

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<v Speaker 1>That morning, I was in Washington, DC. And just so

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<v Speaker 1>folks have context, because I made a joke about this

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<v Speaker 1>earlier that I was at my boyfriend's house, So that

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<v Speaker 1>just goes to show you how much has changed in

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<v Speaker 1>twenty years. And in Arlington, Virginia, I started to receive

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<v Speaker 1>phone calls on what was probably a flip phone at

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<v Speaker 1>that time. It was early in the morning, and I

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<v Speaker 1>was no longer in college, and I was getting ready

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<v Speaker 1>to leave in but a couple of days to travel

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<v Speaker 1>for the next three months. So I was sleeping and

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<v Speaker 1>the phone kept ringing, kept ringing, and so finally I

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<v Speaker 1>answered it, and on the other line was my boyfriend

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<v Speaker 1>at the time, and he said, Danielle, where are you?

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<v Speaker 1>And I was like, I'm in the apartment in Arlington.

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<v Speaker 1>And it was like, do you know anybody that works

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<v Speaker 1>in the world Trade Towers? And I thought to myself,

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<v Speaker 1>what an odd question to be asking. No, I don't

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<v Speaker 1>think so, but both of my parents are working in

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<v Speaker 1>the city. Why what's happening? Turn on the TV? Was

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<v Speaker 1>the response. So I sit up and I turn on

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<v Speaker 1>the television and on every station is smoke billowing out

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<v Speaker 1>of the first tower that was hit. I could not,

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<v Speaker 1>like the rest of the world, believe my eyes. This

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<v Speaker 1>is one of the most, if not the most iconic

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<v Speaker 1>skylines in the world, and all I could think of

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<v Speaker 1>in that moment, because this day, like many traumatic days

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<v Speaker 1>that would soon follow, are kind of I don't know,

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<v Speaker 1>etched into my mind. I looked into the towers and

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<v Speaker 1>I'm thinking to myself, are people there are people inside?

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<v Speaker 1>What's happening? And then right in front of us, the

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<v Speaker 1>second plane hit. And then my reaction was, oh, my god,

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<v Speaker 1>are there people on that plane? Because the initial thought

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<v Speaker 1>when we first saw the smoke was that there had

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<v Speaker 1>been an accident, right, because planes and helicopters fly around

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<v Speaker 1>New York City all the time. There are two of

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<v Speaker 1>major international airports, right, and so it had to have

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<v Speaker 1>been an accident, because it never would have occurred to

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<v Speaker 1>any of us prior to that time that this was intentional,

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<v Speaker 1>that it would be that nineteen hijackers fit with armor

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<v Speaker 1>and zip ties would have the ability to hijack an

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<v Speaker 1>entire fucking plane and crash it into the towers. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>my eyes didn't leave the television screen except when there

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<v Speaker 1>was news that there was another plane that had hit.

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<v Speaker 1>But this time it wasn't in New York that it

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<v Speaker 1>was around the corner from where I was at the Pentagon,

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<v Speaker 1>from the apartment building that I was living in at

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<v Speaker 1>the time. On the balcony, you could see the smoke

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<v Speaker 1>billowing up from the Pentagon, which was probably about a

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<v Speaker 1>mile two miles away from where I was standing. It

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<v Speaker 1>was if in that moment, the entire place, all of Arlington,

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<v Speaker 1>all of New York, just seemed to stop dead in

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<v Speaker 1>its tracks. I turned back, went back inside, and feverishly

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<v Speaker 1>began to call my parents, who, like I said, both

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<v Speaker 1>were working in the city in Manhattan, at that time,

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<v Speaker 1>and if folks remember, if you were trying to reach

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<v Speaker 1>people in New York, all you got were busy signals.

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<v Speaker 1>There was call waiting, was not breaking through, so you

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<v Speaker 1>just kept having to call and call and call. So

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<v Speaker 1>for an hour or so, which felt like forever at

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<v Speaker 1>that time, I couldn't get in contact with either of

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<v Speaker 1>my parents. Finally I did, and I had called around

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<v Speaker 1>to my grandparents, to my aunts, to my uncles to

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<v Speaker 1>see if they had heard anything from them. Thankfully, my

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<v Speaker 1>parents were okay. Thankfully my mother had gotten news while

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<v Speaker 1>she was commune to the city about what had just

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<v Speaker 1>transpired and was able to get on a train and

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<v Speaker 1>head right back home. The same went for my dad.

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<v Speaker 1>The fear that was coming from their voices and from

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<v Speaker 1>my own was palpable. As we were on the phone,

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<v Speaker 1>asking each other what was happening. And remember I just

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<v Speaker 1>had graduated from college. I'm thinking that the world is

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<v Speaker 1>my oyster, that I'm getting ready to step out into

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<v Speaker 1>this brave new space with all of this information and knowledge,

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<v Speaker 1>ready to embark on my great adventure. It's now, in

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<v Speaker 1>hindsight that I realized that my entire life has been

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<v Speaker 1>from that moment on the kind of pathway into adulthood

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<v Speaker 1>has just been littered with traumatic United States event. It

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<v Speaker 1>would be soon that school shootings would become the norm.

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<v Speaker 1>It would become normal that our government, through the Patriot

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<v Speaker 1>Act and passed almost unanimously, would be the beginning of

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<v Speaker 1>surveillance on United States citizens, all with the idea that

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<v Speaker 1>if we gave away our liberties right then our government

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<v Speaker 1>would keep us safe. We would never think that twenty

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<v Speaker 1>years later you would be using the same tools that

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<v Speaker 1>were to combat terrorism that put in the wrong hands

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<v Speaker 1>like that of Donald Trump, would be used to surveil

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<v Speaker 1>those that are fighting for justice or politicians that he

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<v Speaker 1>just didn't like. Surveillance, it seems, has become our way

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<v Speaker 1>of life, and we didn't realize that nine to eleven

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<v Speaker 1>was the gateway drug to that right two hour or

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<v Speaker 1>Willian present the days following nine to eleven. I can

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<v Speaker 1>remember first that once I was reunited that later that

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<v Speaker 1>late afternoon on nine to eleven with my boyfriend at

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<v Speaker 1>the time, who ended up having to walk from his

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<v Speaker 1>job in DC all the way back to Arlington because

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<v Speaker 1>traffic was that bad. People had abandoned their cars. There

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<v Speaker 1>was just the panic in the air was palpable. When

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<v Speaker 1>he finally reached back to where we were living at

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<v Speaker 1>the time, we decided to go out and see what

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<v Speaker 1>was going on in the streets. Right empty, completely and

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<v Speaker 1>totally empty. It was equivalent to what we saw during

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<v Speaker 1>the shutdown in New York City, where you were seeing

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<v Speaker 1>these iconic pictures of Times Square, in Central Park and

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<v Speaker 1>Washington Square Park in all of these places, just completely empty.

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<v Speaker 1>That's exactly what it looked like in Arlington, Virginia. Not

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<v Speaker 1>a person, not a soul, was on the street. Everyone

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<v Speaker 1>was in their house, glued to their television wondering what

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<v Speaker 1>was going to happen next. Was this the beginning of

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<v Speaker 1>a larger attack? Now, remember there were multiple planes that

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<v Speaker 1>were going around, and one of them was headed squarely

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<v Speaker 1>towards the White House, but somehow was either shot down

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<v Speaker 1>or missed, or what have you. We would later hear

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<v Speaker 1>phone calls, last calls of those that were on the

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<v Speaker 1>planes that hit the towers to their loved ones, saying goodbye.

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<v Speaker 1>For families would forever be changed. Over three thousand Americans

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<v Speaker 1>died that day. While it was a time where I

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<v Speaker 1>would say that I remember the country really coming together

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<v Speaker 1>and George W. Bush was president and telling us that

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<v Speaker 1>we were going to get through this together as Americans.

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<v Speaker 1>I think about that in hindsight and in comparison to

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<v Speaker 1>going to war with a virus, and how Donald Trump

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<v Speaker 1>could have presented the American people with the same thoughts

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<v Speaker 1>of unity, with the same thoughts of we will get

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<v Speaker 1>through this traumatic, terrible time, but we will do so together.

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<v Speaker 1>But of course we know that he squandered that opportunity.

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<v Speaker 1>But when George W. Bush said those things, there was

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<v Speaker 1>something that passed my mind, and it was I wonder

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<v Speaker 1>whatnicity the people are that attacked our country. And that

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<v Speaker 1>is always a thing that has always been thought in

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<v Speaker 1>my head. Anytime that somebody had ever said anything about

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<v Speaker 1>a shooting or a robbing or whatever, my fear is

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<v Speaker 1>always said, it's going to be a person of color,

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<v Speaker 1>which means that then an entire community is going to

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<v Speaker 1>be victimized. Well, that is exactly what happened post nine

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<v Speaker 1>to eleven, that once the ethnicities of the terrorists were

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<v Speaker 1>revealed to be of Middle Eastern descent, to be of

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<v Speaker 1>the Muslim faith. Mind you, there are over a billion

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<v Speaker 1>Muslims in the world right over a billion people worship Islam.

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<v Speaker 1>And yet we in this country decided that every single

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<v Speaker 1>one of those millions of people were in fact terrorists.

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<v Speaker 1>Muslim Americans were surveiled, they were followed, they were threatened,

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<v Speaker 1>they were beat up, and worse, now, all of a sudden,

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<v Speaker 1>we began to fear our neighbors in a way that

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<v Speaker 1>we never had before, all because of what these nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>hijackers did. That is it for Today's Woke, a f

0:15:35.080 --> 0:15:38.360
<v Speaker 1>daily podcast. To hear more from me, including five full

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<v Speaker 1>hour long shows every single week, exclusive guests, interviews, and more.

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<v Speaker 1>Support me on Patreon at Patreon dot com. Slash Woke

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<v Speaker 1>a power to the people and to all the people. Power,

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<v Speaker 1>Get woke and stay woke as fuck.