I'm writing this while sitting in Philadelphia International Airport (yes, I'm flying on 9/11) and it seems that the airport is not as full as the myriad other times I've flown out. The girl at the Continental counter says it's been light but of course this is anecdotal evidence.

I was sitting here thinking back to that early September day in 2001 when the most beautiful, crystal clear day was stained by two planes flying into two New York City landmarks. I watched most of it happen from a mile or two away. I was heading to Long Island to meet with a client and was traveling on the 440 just before the Staten Island Expressway exit when the first plane hit. The initial word was that it was a small commuter plane, yet I didn't quite believe it as it was such a clear day.

I exited onto the SIE headed toward the Verrazano Narrows Bridge when the second plane hit. To get an idea of the distance from the bridge to to the WTC, click here. I watched the second plane hit and saw the fireball as clear as one can from a couple of miles away, the plane came in low over Jersey City/Hoboken/Bayonne and hit with dramatic force. I was talking with my dad on the phone and he just cursed when it hit, the radio was set to Imus and he pretty much did the same, I don't recall. Traffic on the bridge stopped and outbound from Brooklyn was halted to allow rescue squads from Perth Amboy and Old Bridge in Jersey to gain access. I spent what seemed an eternity on that bridge inching along until I finally hit the exit for the Belt Parkway. It was soon after that the towers fell and, to be honest, it never crossed my mind that they'd come down. I thought of all the people and rescue personnel and what they were experiencing.

I tried to get into Manhattan to...well, I don't know what but I have expert emergency response experience and I thought I could do something. There was no way to gain access and no way to go but continue on to Long Island. The client I was to visit closed as he had employee's whose families worked in the WTC and everyone was too preoccupied to work, which is understandable. I called 25-different hotels trying to book a room but everyone was full so I ended up staying at a motor lodge in Bayshore and settled in to watch events unfold.

I watched Rudy Giuliani take control of an uncontrollable situation and I saw a city united like I had never seen before and won't ever see again.

Sorry for the long-windedness, but this is a day that should always be remembered. It was a day that 19 Arab men under the direction of one rich, misguided Saudi shook the entire world with a plan that amazing in its simplicity. It's a day that the Global War on Terror began and we'll be fighting it for years if not decades. I watched a supposed "frat boy" President take control and lead us through some seriously dark days and heard many Democrats quietly thank the heavens that it wasn't Al Gore occupying the White House. "Lock boxes" don't work against terrorism and the many missed opportunities during the Clinton-Gore years had brought terrorism to America. We have not been attacked again under George W. Bush's leadership even though the Democrats have continually tried to undermine it.

In the last six-years, we've heard outrageous conspiracy theories from idiot "Truthers" who believe President Bush and Dick Cheney were complicit in the events of that day. It has become an industry for many and is the most disrespectful development after 9/11. We've also heard of the many lost freedoms that we have endured although no one can put a finger on just exactly what they are. We've seen a resurgence of the Vietnam protesters led by wacko fringe groups such as Code Pink(o), the George Soros-funded International A.N.S.W.E.R. and the continuation of the despicable MoveOn.org, an organization formed to "move" the country on from the impeachment hearings.

I'm among the 16% of Americans who think of 9/11 every day. I could be in Harrison, NJ and see a remnant of the steel from the towers or be driving by Manhattan and it still feels as though there's a hole in the sky. I don't want to forget because we have to be ever vigilant as this war is still going on. We've seen the absolute worst in the once fringe-now mainstream left from the "Truther" inanity to ascendancy of an extreme Internet community that has enough clout in the party to attract nearly every presidential aspirant. We've split as a country and that schism won't soon heal. We have the single-most important election coming up in 14-months and the decision we as a nation make will reverberate for the next twenty five years.

Anyway, I have a flight to catch.