Aerial view of the planned 9/11 memorial on the site of the World Trade Center. (photo from 9/11 Memorial website)

It has been a decade since the unprecedented terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.  Despite the time that has passed, our memories of that day remain fresh and raw.  More than 3,000 lives were lost in the attacks at New York City and the Pentagon as terrorist hijackers flew two planes into the World Trade Center and one into the Pentagon.  More than 400 firefighters, police officers, and other first responders lost their lives responding to the tragedies in New York and Washington.  Thanks to the brave actions of the passengers of United Flight 93, countless more lives were saved.  All 45 people aboard that flight were killed as a brave few attacked the hijackers, forcing the plane down in a field in rural Pennsylvania.  Had the hijackers completed their mission with an attack from Flight 93 on any strategic location in Washington, the total death toll would have been higher.

Less than a month later, the US military mobilized to Afghanistan to rout out the Taliban regime which had provided safe harbor to the terrorist mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks, Osama bin Laden.  Within a few years of entering Afghanistan, the US military also began mobilizing to remove Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq. 

Approximately three-quarters of APUS’ student body have served as active military personnel and have been directly involved in these missions.  Some of them made the ultimate sacrifice in these two theaters of action.  To date, more than 6,000 American military personnel have lost their lives in Iraq or Afghanistan since those wars began.  Each of us owes a tremendous debt of gratitude to the first responders who risked their lives to assist those trapped in the rubble in New York City and at the Pentagon, to our men and women in uniform, and to the many people who work diligently to identify and avert future attacks.  I encourage everyone to take a moment to reflect on the lives lost on that fateful September day and to commemorate and honor those who have continued to risk their lives to protect our nation and its citizens. 

Two months to the day after the attacks, President Bush said, “’Time is passing.  Yet, for the United States of America, there will be no forgetting September the 11th.  We will remember every rescuer who died in honor.  We will remember every family that lives in grief.  We will remember the fire and ash, the last phone calls, the funerals of the children.’”  These words are as accurate today as they were ten years ago.  Even as we near completion of an official memorial to victims in New York, celebrate the toppling of the Taliban in Afghanistan, the capture and execution of Saddam Hussein, and the death of Osama bin Laden earlier this year at the hands of US special forces, we will always remember that day, the tragedy it brought to our entire nation, and those who have given their lives since to ensure that the freedoms on which this nation was established remain intact for future generations. 

In honor of this weekend, Story Corps preserves some of the voices of those affected by 9/11.

The number of deaths that day in New York was 2,819.  Of that number, 343 were firefighters and paramedics, 23 were NYPD officers, and 37 were Port Authority police officers.  The crash at the Pentagon killed 125 people including 55 service members.  The death toll of passengers and crew members from the four planes was 246.

The quest to reduce the impact of terrorism and subsequent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan has resulted in 5,661 deaths through September 5.  Hundreds of thousands of our country’s active duty, reserve, and guard service members have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, many for multiple assignments.  Thousands of intelligence community members have been deployed as well.

We salute the memories of the fallen as well as salute the efforts of everyone who has been deployed in the fight against terrorism.  Tomorrow morning, pause for a moment and think about the hundreds of thousands of heroes who have sacrificed life, limb, and personal safety for our security at home.

I was never a student of public policy, but because of its impact to my employer and myself, I have to be more than a bystander.  From my observations, it appears that healing and conciliation are no more than campaign promises from politicians on both sides of the aisle.  The breakdown appears to be more severe on a national level than a state and local government level, but that might be caused by the fact that state and local governments are required to balance their fiscal budgets and the federal government is the only entity allowed to print money to pay its bills.

Fixing healthcare in the United States has been a goal of multiple administrations since the 1960’s.  Unfortunately, the legislative fixes over the years were generally to add benefits (which would add votes from those receiving the benefits, primarily the elderly and the poor), decrease payments to providers (fewer voters impacted), and defer discussion of how to solve the impact of the Baby Boomer generation’s retirement on the Medicare and Medicaid programs.  Medicaid was a mandated benefit requiring the states to pick up half the cost, but in the years of a booming economy and steadily increasing real estate taxes, the states grumbled more than shouted out in pain.  This year’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (also known as the Stimulus Act) provided states with funding to cover some of their expenses in Medicaid and education.  The stimulus act was intended to be a short-term solution, allowing the states time to find ways to balance their budgets going forward.

As I write this, I don’t know what the final outcome of the healthcare bill will be.  The Senate and the House have to reconcile their bills and there are members who state that they won’t agree to a bill without a public option and members who won’t agree to a bill with a public option.  Some members like Nebraska’s Ben Nelson appear to have successfully negotiated for the sale of their vote.  I wonder if that funding provision will stand and if Senator Nelson’s vote will continue to be yes if the funding is removed.

The purpose of this article is not to discuss politics or the merits of different proposals.  I really wanted to discuss how important it is going to be for our elected and appointed government officials to engage in a rational discussion of all of the pros and cons of legislation and not just the party line.  Our national debt is at an all time high.  The war on terror continues and the costs of funding it are substantially America’s.  Our military service members and many other public servants provide an invaluable service protecting our freedoms and our safety every day, 365 days a year, and their activities are independent of which political party controls the White House.  The Stimulus Act funding is going away and many states are still working on ways to cut their projected deficits.  Real estate values have decreased by approximately 20 percent nationwide.  Passage of the healthcare bill is bound to increase costs.  Cap and trade is another pending bill that will increase costs for some companies and consumers as well as decrease tax revenues to coal-producing states.  Publicly-funded higher education is also under funding stress in many states.  At some point, the citizens of our country have to pay for the costs of all of these initiatives.  Increasing taxes is inevitable, but tax increases can negatively impact the economy as well.

Most Americans manage their household expenses through a system of prioritization.  If incoming funds are expected to be lower this year, we know we can’t buy a new car or take a vacation to Disney World.  Sometimes, we work out compromises on the budget and buy a used car instead of a new car and take a vacation to the local beach or mountains versus flying to a more exotic locale.   For-profit and non-profit businesses have to do the same. Because of laws requiring balanced budgets, most state and local legislative bodies have to engage in a process like this as well.   My New Year’s wish would be that our nationally-elected officials cool the rhetoric, discuss the issues, and prioritize their votes for the future of America.  A quick solution to generate votes for next year’s election is wrong if it mortgages the future for generations to come.

Precedents for the fall of the wall were the discussions between the West and Mikhail Gorbachev.  Because of those discussions, President Reagan made one of the most famous speeches of the time at the Brandenburg Gate on June 12, 1987.   The most famous line of President Reagan’s speech was:  “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.”

I grew up during the Cold War.  In the 1960’s and 1970’s, all public schools held Air Raid drills.  We were taught where the fallout shelters were.  Our enemies were the Russians and Chinese.  As an undergraduate at Duke University, I was fascinated with American diplomacy and followed the policy of containment favored by George Kennan and the policy of arms superiority favored by Paul Nitze.  In the end, Kennan’s policy worked because of Nitze’s interpretation that the Soviets would only respect strength.

Twenty years after the fall of the wall, there’s now a generation of Americans who were born after the end of the Cold War.  Unfortunately, the world is not at peace.  The same technologies that have “flattened” the world (according to author Tom Friedman) have also provided terror groups with access to like-minded members around the world.  Fighting these groups will require a sophisticated alignment between domestic and international intelligence agencies as well as state and local law enforcement departments.  While this is not my area of expertise, I sense that this effort will require unprecedented cooperation and that some of the cooperation will be encumbered with political roadblocks.  Academic institutions can do our part by providing relevant courses and programs ranging from National Security and Diplomacy to Strategic Intelligence and Homeland Security.  I hope the era of terrorism falls sooner than it took for the wall to fall.

John Brown was an American abolitionist born in Connecticut.  After an unsuccessful attempt at becoming a Congregationalist minister, Brown married Dianthe Lusk and moved to New Richmond, Pennsylvania where he opened a tannery, a venture that became quite successful for the family.  In 1832, following complications from the birth of Brown’s seventh child, his wife, Dianthe, died.  Soon after, however, Brown married sixteen-year-old Mary Ann Day with whom he had an additional 13 children. 

Brown was always an enthusiastic supporter of the anti-slavery movement.  After learning of the death of Elijah P. Lovejoy in 1837, Brown spoke the following words which would serve as a theme for the rest of his life: “’Here, before God, in the presence of these witnesses, from this time, I consecrate my life to the destruction of slavery!’”  In 1848, Brown moved his growing family to North Elba, New York to settle among poor black families who were being granted land by abolitionist Gerrit Smith.  Though he purchased land and built a home, he spent little time there.  When some of his adult sons who were in the Kansas Territory told Brown in 1855 of militant pro-slavery forces taking root there, Brown left his home in New York and traveled to meet them to oppose these forces and the institution of slavery in general.

While in Kansas, Brown led a group of men, including several of his adult sons, on a raid of Lawrence, Kansas after pro-slavery forces sacked the town.  The raid in May 1856, known as the Pottawatomie Massacre, ended in the death of five pro-slavery settlers in Franklin County, Kansas.  Though Kansas remained a slave state after John Brown’s raid, Brown did not give up his support for the anti-slavery movement.  Upon returning to New York in 1856, Brown traveled through New England attempting to garner support and funds for his cause.  Prominent supporters of Brown included William Lloyd Garrison, Samuel Gridley Howe, Frederick Douglass, and Henry David Thoreau. 

After several years of seeking support and funds, Brown returned to his New York home in 1859 to say farewell to his family before heading to Harpers Ferry.  By July 1859, Brown arrived in Harpers Ferry and under the alias Isaac Smith rented a farmhouse four miles away in Maryland.  There he awaited the arrival of those he had attempted to recruit during his travels through New England and was eventually disappointed that they did not show up in the numbers he had anticipated.  Indeed, upon revealing his plans to raid the Federal Armory at Harpers Ferry to several of his supporters, those supporters (including Frederick Douglass) expressed reservations about the plan and discouraged others from joining Brown’s effort.  After receiving promises of support from hundreds of men, only 21 showed up at Brown’s rented farm in Maryland.  Even with these small numbers, Brown was determined to push forward with his mission.

On October 16, 1859, Brown led 19 of these men to Harpers Ferry where they implemented their plan to raid and take possession of the Armory at Harpers Ferry.  The Armory contained approximately 10,000 muskets and rifles. Brown’s plan was to distribute them to local slaves until all of Virginia’s slaves were armed in rebellion against their masters and the institution of slavery as a whole. 

When the group of 20 men, including Brown, entered Harpers Ferry, they met little resistance from the townspeople and quickly took possession of the Armory as only one guard was defending it.  Brown’s plan started to go awry when an eastbound train began to approach the town.  One of Brown’s men fired on the train and the baggage master, ironically a free black man named Hayward Shepherd, became the first casualty of the assault.  After the death of Shepherd, Brown allowed the train to continue on its path.  That proved to be a critical mistake.  Through the train’s passengers and conductor, word of the raid reached Washington only hours later.  In the meantime, Brown’s men were coming under fire by local forces who had taken up positions in the hills and mountains surrounding the town.  By the morning of October 18, President James Buchanan had ordered a company of US Marines, led by Colonel Robert E. Lee to proceed to Harper’s Ferry.  Lee quickly surrounded Brown’s men in the engine house where they had moved after their escape had been cut off by local militia.  Lee sent Lt. J.E.B. Stuart to negotiate with Brown and tell him that their lives would be spared if they surrendered.  Brown’s refusal to surrender triggered a signal from Stuart and the Marines stormed the fort. Within minutes, Brown and his surviving men were in custody.  Ten of Brown’s men were killed in the fight, including two of his sons, and five escaped.  Brown sustained serious wounds during the battle and the seven other men who were captured with him were questioned for hours by authorities.  In a political twist due to the tension between the slavery and anti-slavery states, Virginia Governor Henry Wise insisted that Brown and his men be tried in Virginia even though the Armory was technically federal property. 

Brown was charged with murdering four whites and one black man as well as conspiring with slaves to rebel and treason against Virginia.  The trial of Brown and his men began in Charles Town on October 27 and lasted just over a week.  John Brown did not have counsel for much of the trial and was appointed several local attorneys to serve as counsel until his personal attorney could arrive from Boston, Massachusetts.  On November 2, 1859, despite the efforts of his team of attorneys, Brown was found guilty on all counts and sentenced to be hanged in public on December 2.  During the last month of his life, Brown was housed in the jail in Charles Town.  Also, during that last month, actor John Wilkes Booth (Abraham Lincoln’s assassin) performed orations from a meeting house in town.  Interestingly, one of Brown’s colleagues, Silas Soule,  managed to infiltrate the jail and intended to rescue Brown.  Brown refused and told Soule that he was prepared to die as a martyr.  Cadets from the Virginia Military Institute were sent to guard the execution site in case any of Brown’s supporters attempted to rescue him.  Among the three faculty members leading the VMI cadets was Major Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson.  On December 2, Brown is reported to have read his Bible and written a letter to his wife which included his will.  At 11:00 am that morning, he was escorted from the jail.  Brown refused any religious services both in the jail and at the scaffold since he had consistently rejected the ministrations of pro-slavery clergy throughout his life.  At 11:15 am, Brown was hanged and was pronounced dead at 11:50 am.  His body was placed in a wooden coffin with the noose still around his neck and returned to North Elba, New York where he was buried next to two of his sons who died at Harpers Ferry. 

Brown’s legacy has remained a controversial one.  Some historians note that even though Brown at times alluded to his hope to end slavery without much bloodshed, his raid spilled the blood of innocent people.  Others see Brown as one of the most steadfast abolitionists of the time and commend him for his efforts.  Undoubtedly, his raid and trial accelerated the path of the Civil War that erupted between the states.  During the war, the most popular song sung by Union troops was John Brown’s Body.  The melody of that song was later used for the song The Battle Hymn of the Republic. Today marks the 150 year anniversary of the conclusion of John Brown’s trial.  The National Park service held a series of events in Harpers Ferry in October and the Jefferson County Historical Society is having its fall meeting on November 7 at 2:00 pm on the lower level of the Old Charles Town Library on the corner of Washington and Samuel Streets.  At that meeting, local author and JCHS Board member, Bob O’Conner, will give a presentation titled, “Charlestown’s Role in the John Brown Events of 1859.”  I encourage anyone who can attend to do so since I am sure it will be informative and worthwhile. 

Below is a photo gallery with images that relate to John Brown’s trial.  Interestingly, the home of former Mayor and John Brown defense counsel Thomas Green has been restored by APUS and is now used as a conference center.

[Show as slideshow]

This year, I will arrive in South Africa on July 4th.  While July 4th is not South Africa’s Independence Day, I believe that it is a great date for me to arrive and experience my first trip there.  For the  majority of South Africans, their independence occurred when apartheid ended in 1994, a fairly recent date in our lifetime.  In the 1970s and 1980s, college students and faculty members were the major voices of conscience pressuring the United States Congress and U.S. corporations to boycott South African goods and products in order to force an end to the apartheid policies.   I distinctly remember the shanty towns that were erected at my alma mater and other colleges across the country to protest the living conditions in South Africa. 

As I travel through South Africa on and around the time of this significant American holiday, I am aware of the sacrifices made by blacks and other minorities in South Africa in order to achieve equality and true democracy.  I am looking forward to my visit and will share my thoughts about the trip after I return.

As you enjoy picnics, parades, and time with family and friends tomorrow, I encourage you to take a moment to salute our nation’s flag.  I also hope you will pause remember those who have sacrificed their lives to protect the freedoms for which it stands, consider those around the world who have only recently been granted the rights and freedoms that we enjoy as Americans, and remember that there are others still struggling under governments that refuse to provide those fundamental rights to their citizens.

On this day as on all others, we should all be proud to be Americans.

Bernard J. Cigrand, a young teacher working at the Stoney Hill School near Fredonia, Wisconsin, began the process that eventually led to the recognition of June 14 as Flag Day.  In 1885, on the anniversary of the adoption of the flag, Cigrand placed a small (ten inches) flag with 38 stars in an inkwell on his desk and then assigned his students to write an essay explaining what the flag meant to them.  Upon the completion of the assignment, however, Cigrand continued to advocate for the adoption of a holiday to observe the significance of the flag. 

Others mimicked Cigrand’s sentiment in the late 1800s, perhaps as a means of assisting in the Americanization of the country’s immigrant children.  In 1889, for example, George Balch, a kindergarten teacher in New York City planned activities for his students to recognize the flag on June 14.  Soon after, the State Board of Education of New York adopted Flag Day as a holiday to be observed by all public schools in the state.  Two years later, the Betsy Ross House in Philadelphia held a Flag Day celebration and the following year the New York Society of the Sons of the Revolution officially observed Flag Day.  In 1893, Dr. Edward Brooks, then Superintendent of Public Schools of Philadelphia endorsed a resolution that would allow school children in that city to celebrate Flag Day.

On May 30, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson officially requested that Flag Day be recognized as a national holiday occurring every June 14 but it was not until President Harry Truman signed an Act of Congress on August 3, 1949 that June 14 was officially established as National Flag Day. 

There are now 27 official versions of the flag, changing each time a new state was officially added to the nation.  All 27 versions can be seen on display in the Americanism Center Avenue of Flags of the National Flag Day Foundation’s headquarters located in Waubeka, Wisconsin where Bernard J. Cigrand was born.  Though our nation and our flag have undergone dramatic changes since the Stars and Stripes were first adopted, the sentiment that the flag represents remains unchanged.

I have never been to Waubeka, Wisconsin, but I have visited the Flag House in Baltimore, Maryland.  Built in 1793, this house was the home and place of business of Mary Pickersgill, the woman who made the flag that flew over Fort McHenry in 1812 and inspired attorney Francis Scott Key to write our national anthem.  As you may know, that flag is part of a famous exhibit in the Smithsonian Institute’s National Museum of American History in Washington, DC and is one of our nation’s cherished artifacts.  While there are many famous flags in our nation’s capital, my favorite is the flag on the USMC War Memorial which represents the sacrifices that so many have made to preserve our nation’s independence and freedoms.

This Sunday, please fly your flag proudly and take a moment to reflect on the historic and symbolic importance of the values and sentiments it represents.

This Memorial Day, I encourage you to take a moment to consider the sacrifices that have been made in the name of America’s freedom.  Since our nation’s inception, the men and women of our armed forces have been willing to lay down their lives so that we as individual citizens can continue to enjoy the many freedoms that are such a hallmark of American life.  Our nation is facing challenges that may seem unprecedented and overwhelming at times.  Despite the challenges, the freedoms enjoyed by every American citizen are steadfast and unwavering thanks to the valiant sacrifices of our nation’s military, past and present.

Take a moment today to pause and reflect on our freedoms.  And thank those who made the ultimate sacrifice.

By the mid 1800s, another American president had captured the hearts of the American people: President Abraham Lincoln.  Coincidentally, Lincoln’s birthday is February 12th.  In 1865, one year after President Lincoln’s assassination, the nation officially honored his presidency and character by commemorating his birthday.  In 1880, George Washington’s birthday became a federal legal holiday, making Washington the first American to have a federal holiday named in his honor.  Though Lincoln’s birthday did not become an official federal holiday, many states began celebrating it either in addition to or in conjunction with George Washington’s birthday.  Those states that celebrated Lincoln’s birthday in conjunction with Washington’s began calling the holiday Presidents Day.

In 1968, Congress passed legislation, known as the Uniform Monday Holiday Act that gave federal employees some fixed three-day weekends.  With this legislation, the observance of Washington’s birthday was moved from February 22nd to the third Monday in February.  In the same year, Congress debated the issue of renaming the holiday to Presidents Day.  The motion failed and the holiday is still officially known as Washington’s Birthday even though it is popularly called Presidents Day around the country.

Beginning in the 1900s, few Americans celebrated the holiday with the type of zeal that their ancestors did.  Most businesses closed and for most Americans, the holiday became simply a day off work.  With the advertising boom of the 1980s, however, media executives saw an opportunity to promote the holiday as a “shopping holiday.”  True to the American spirit of consumerism, businesses reopened their doors on Presidents Day in the 1980s and coaxed shoppers with huge sales.  Today, the holiday is synonymous with shopping and sales.  Given the state of the economy, however, it will be interesting to see how retailers fare this Presidents Day compared to those past.

A Peace Corps volunteers works in South America. (Photo from www.peacecorps.gov)

In October 1960, Senator John Kennedy spoke to graduates of the University of Michigan and encouraged them to “live and work in developing countries around the world, thus dedicating themselves to the cause of peace and development.”  On September 22, 1961, the culmination of the efforts Kennedy discussed at the University of Michigan the previous year were realized when Congress authorized the passage of the Peace Corps Act officially establishing the Peace Corps. 

Since the official establishment of the Peace Corps, nearly 200,000 Americans have donated their time and efforts in 139 countries toward achieving the goals set forth by Senator Kennedy in 1960.  In its earliest years, the Peace Corps focused on fundamental and vital necessities, including access to clean drinking water and literacy, which would help promote development in “interested countries.”  Today’s Peace Corps performs many of the same functions its first volunteers experienced, but as the world and its problems have evolved, so too has the Peace Corps.

New challenges brought by complex political and economic situations have proven crucial for American volunteers wishing to make a difference in the lives of the world’s most needy.  Peace Corps volunteers today (there are more than 8,000 of them) may find themselves helping establish a computer learning center in the Caribbean or instructing young people in Asia on how to prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS.  With a budget of $330 million in fiscal year 2008, the Peace Corps has grown in size and ambition.

After the September 11th terrorist attacks on the United States, a group of returned Peace Corps volunteers established the Peace Corps Fund with its stated mission of “helping Americans understand the people and cultures of other countries.”  Former Peace Corps volunteers may apply for funding through the Peace Corps Fund to help achieve the third goal of the Peace Corps mission, to share their knowledge of other cultures with their fellow Americans. 

In today’s complex and ever-changing world, there can be little debate that cultural understanding is one of the cornerstones of a peaceful co-existence.  I have discussed in several articles posted on this blog the importance of cultural understanding and impact of globalization (see Creative Capitalism; Globalization and the Importance of Understanding Cultures; Economics, Ireland and Similarities to the U.S.; and Price of Gas).  For more than four decades, Peace Corps volunteers have devoted their time and energy to promoting such cultural understanding and cooperation while adjusting their activities to fit the most pressing needs of a changing world.