September 11 Attack

The September 11th attack on the World Trade Center was the deadliest terrorist attack in United States history. During the attack, over 3000 people were killed and several more were wounded. The attack was carried out by the Islamic terror organization Al-Qaeda, whose gunmen seized four passenger airlines and used two of them to crash-land the world trade center’s northern and southern towers. Both buildings had 110 stories before collapsing into rubble (Halliday 1). The third aircraft flew into the Pentagon, the United States Department of Defense’s headquarters. The fourth plane crashed as the passengers tried to overpower the hijackers. The total number of causalities including the rescue teams who lost their lives trying to save the survivor amounted to 2900.

This attack enraged the Americans as many people lost their loved once while other had permanent deformities. Most of my family members were firefighters and were devoted to helping people. During the attack, 343 firefighters lost their lives trying to help the victims of the assault; among them were my brother and uncle. The loss was devastating to all the family members and most of all, my entire father who lost both his limbs in the attack. This attack changed my life completely and turned me from a self-centered person to a responsible person. My father was hospitalized for a month; this left me with the responsibility of taking care of my mother and siblings. After he was discharged, he also needed help with his movement. The attack made me realize how fragile life is as well as the devastating effects of war.

My family was among the many that were affected. Various self-help groups brought together the people families who were affected to recount their ordeals and face their fears. This was due to the psychological effects that the attack had on the people who were injured and also to the masses that lost their loved ones in the attack. Apart from those who were affected, all the Americans lost their sense of security. The people lived in fear of other attacks and refrained from boarding airplanes. Security was heightened, and there were tighter amendments made on anti-terrorism laws by American and its allies such as the United Kingdom. These amendments were made to seal all the loopholes available for another attack on the United States.

Before the attack, most of the Americans were against any forms of war and comfits and spoke against them (Keniston 45). However, the pressure that the public put on Congress to vote for the invasion of Afghanistan was overwhelming. People who couldn’t have hurt a fly before were screaming for blood. Due to those events, I was torn apart by what I felt about the war. I volunteered at the Baptist General Hospital at the physical therapy department as I frequently took my father there. I managed to interact with various survivors of the September 11 attack some of whom had lost more than just limbs. The facility was flooded with patients from the attacks from Mississippi who had sort medical care near their homes. The experience was intense as the agony and frustration that most of the patients had was overwhelming. Volunteering made me realize how much help people need in times of crises and how little they get. I helped in the movement of patients from place to place as well as offering help in the administration of physical therapy.

The attack and the experience that followed the attack shaped my life completely. My perspective of life changed from being a self-centered person to being concerned about the frustrations that other people face in life. As much as I am employed, I have prioritized and dedicated my life to helping victims of disasters and misfortunes. Having a disabled family member is a hard fact to cope with as they need close attention. With the help of my mother, my father is currently living his life and has moved past the tragic event of the loss of his limbs as well as his colleagues.

The terror attack was a turning point in my life, and its impact has been significant to many people who were affected too. Other individuals enlisted in the army voluntarily to take part in the war due to the losses they had during the attack. However, on my part, it made me value life, more than ever.

Prostheticlimbs

Prosthetic limbs are meant to help the lame walk. They have also been used by people mostly soldiers who lost their limbs in battle. The technology of artificial legs has been in existence dating back to the 14centurty. However, this technology, over the year, has advanced to incorporate better materials and flexibility for the patients (Cowan 20). The modern prosthetic legs for instances have been modified to incorporate the current technological inventions. There are also surgical procedures that make prosthetic limbs permanent to the body. This invention has been of great help to so many people over time, for instance, during the World War 1 and 2, so many soldiers came back home without limbs. These inventions came in hand for most of the as they were able to retain mobility and either keep serving their nation or fending for their families. It can be noted that these advanced prosthetic limbs are more effective than the later versions of the same (Resnik 710).

The society has welcomed this invention especially in families where one or more of the members lost their limbs either through trauma or congenital diseases. My family was among the many that benefited from this technology. Both limbs of my father were lost during the September 11 attack. After several months of treatment and therapy, the hospital offered to fit him with prosthetic limbs. With the new prosthetic limbs, the life of our family changed for the better. My father regained mobility and confidence and begun attending to chores. This changed his life and that of the family. I began spending more time at work as well as volunteering in the Baptist hospital while my father took care of himself and depended on himself.

The significance of the new and advanced prosthetic could be seen in the effects it had on the lives of other patients in physical therapy. They began being independent as they could move about without help and do chores and duties. This prosthetic was a real change in the field of medicine as it gave people hope in life. It is human nature to feel like a burden to the society when they lose the ability to provide and function. However, with the advanced prosthetic limbs, those who lose their limbs have an opportunity to give back to the society by getting employment and or keeping their jobs, for those who were already employed.

To our family, it can serve as a God given the gift to our father. The attack had taken all hopes from my father as the loss of his limbs led to the subsequent loss of his jobs. However, the effects that the prosthetic limbs had on him were quite visible. He resumed his cheerful self and began doing chores. I learned a big lesson from this. Hope keeps people going despite the circumstances they go through. Since the prosthetic limbs are expensive, I made donations to hospitals and encourage others to do the same to enable those victims of the attacks to be fitted with prosthetic limbs. Since the attack on September 11, my biggest concern has been to change the lives of the people who fell victims of the same attack. With the support of my father, there is a campaign in Mississippi that calls or both the county government and the people to come together and offer any support for the victims of the September 11 attack. There were various categories of survivors ranging from burn victims to these who lost body parts.

The perspective of life changes with events. The tragedy of the attack, for instance, shed light to most Americans on the significances of peace, cooperation, and patriotism. The tragedy brought together the American people from all corners as most of them offered any help to the victims regarding payment of bills as well as funeral arrangements from those who did were less fortunate. The same was the case with our family as e-bonded more due to the effects of the attack on the family. It also brought a realization that life should be appreciated to the later as it’s is both valuable and fragile.

The victim’s family and friends are the witnesses to the first hand on the devastating effects of the attack and the damages it had on families. Our family, for instance, lost two relatives on the firefighting team mission as well as the injury suffered by my father. The result was the realization of the significance of collective responsibilities.

Rehabilitation was a significant part of both the patients who were injured in the attack and to those who lost their loved ones (Resnik 712). The bond in my family was also strengthened by the September 11 attack, as the members of the family become more responsible and more involved in community services as well as volunteer programs to give back to the society for all the support we got from the friends and families. It can, therefore, be noted that tragic events give purpose to the lives of people, either victims or friends, and relatives of those who were either affected or lost their loved ones.

America Afghanistan war

This attack enraged the Americans who called for retaliation. Congress voted for the invasion of Afghanistan as it was harboring the Taliban. The then president, George Bush gave the government of Afghanistan an ultimatum to hand over Osama Bin Laden as the FBI wanted him in 1998 bombing of the America embassy in Kenya (Hook and Spannier CQ Press). The United Nations also wanted him in connections with various terrorist attacks across the globe. The government of Afghanistan, however, refused to comply with these demands of the United States to hand over Osama bin Laden and dismantle al-Qaeda stating that they needed sufficient evidence to indicate that he was responsible for the attack. This was seen as noncompliance by the United States and led to its invasion of Afghanistan. The United Kingdom, which was a close ally of the United States, joined in the invasion alongside other nations such as Canada, Australia, and northern alliance.

The majority of the Americans approved of the war due to the rage and anger they had over the September 11th attack. Initially, a majority of the Americans were against the various wars and conflict all over the world. However, after the attack, even those people who wouldn’t have hurt a fly were screaming for blood and believed the war to be the pursuit of justice (Hook and Spannier CQ Press). The invasion of Afghanistan led to the collapse of the existing government. Most of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants, however, escaped to neighboring Pakistan and Iraq. To some extent, the war was regarded to as a success by the Americans they managed to dismantle the terror network of the Al-Qaeda.

Due to the rage and anger that the Americans had the September 11th terror attack, a huge number of civilian volunteered to join the war. As much as the war was won, American troops are still deployed to the region. The war was a success as stipulated by the government as well as news outlets. However, the soldiers who went to the war came back with post-traumatic stress. As the saying goes, war only ends when the soldiers die, the soldier who returned from the war experienced the devastation of war firsthand (Sinno 45). I was among those who viewed the war a form of justice for those who have been victimized in the world Trade Center terror attack.

However, the effects that the war had on both soldiers and civilians were unthinkable. For instances, some of the soldiers who came back from the war between 2004 and 2007 were attended to in the Baptist hospital at the physical therapy department. These soldiers had a lot to say about the war. The bigger picture of the win that was flooded all over the internet and news outlets wasn’t all that was characterized by the way. According to the soldiers who came back from the war, there were quite many civilian casualties during the war among them women and children.

This completely changes my view of the war in the sense that there are no winners and losers in wars, just casualties from both sides. The families of the soldiers who died in war were left with only the comfort of the patriotism of their loved ones. Who is to say that the civilian casualties lost Afghanistan war was justice yet those civilians lost in the terror attack want? According to the United States officials, the term collateral damage has frequently been used to refer to the civilian casualties who are caught in the crossfire between the American soldiers and the Islamic militants (Kellner 25). This showed me how life is held with such low value in time of war. This made participate more in debates and campaigns from the withdrawal of the American troops from the middles east. Their presence of American troops in the Arab countries keeps the division between the Arabs and the West to increase.

The war caused the destruction of infrastructure in the country leading to a shortage of resources such as water and food. I joined the Red Cross in seeking assistance and donations from the people of Mississippi to help in the Humanitarian crisis that loomed the Afghanistan country. My biggest argument to the donors and other volunteers was that the war was the making of our country. As much as my role in the Humanitarians section is limited to campaigns for donations, the effects and influence it has on the people are evident. My parents supported my every action as they understood how much I value life. The changes in my life from an irresponsible youth to what I am now is attributed directly to the horror of life and death as well as the devastation of war that I witnessed and received first had from reliable sources.

The war also had immense psychological damage to the soldiers who spend years overseas fighting with the Al-Qaida and Taliban militia. The horror they witnessed such as the killings of their fellow soldiers and those of civilians traumatized the soldiers a great deal. At the Baptist Hospital, most of the soldiers who lived in Mississippi came for psychotherapy due to the pain and suffering they were going through. Some of the soldiers were lone survivors in their platoons who made them hurt and angry. The bigger pictures are seen to be won as the threat posed by Iraqi under its then leader Saddam Hussein was neutralized, however, the soldiers on the ground had horrific experiences of the war. Post-traumatic stress as intense as those experienced by the soldiers was unimaginable. Therefore the doctors fitted them in counseling groups and encouraged them to share their experiences. I wasn’t a victim of any of these traumatic stresses, but I joined these veterans to talk about my life experiences with the September 11th attack and my association with the survivors of the attack. Surprisingly, my experiences, although not intense was received warmly with the therapy group who also opened up to their experiences. One thing was clear about the horrific experiences that the soldiers had overseas; the fact that there is no winner in any war as both sides suffer casualties and psychological damages in the long run. Also, soldiers like any other person need psychological help after horrific incidences in their lives. The misconception that soldiers have a heart of iron does not hold water as they are Humans with feelings and emotions too.

These three mentioned influences in my life, the September 11th terror attack, the advanced prosthetic limbs and the invasion of Afghanistan had significant effects on my life. The transformation that I went through courtesy of these experiences has made me dedicate my life to changing that of others, especially those who are victims of misfortunes. The realization of the devastating effects of war led me to campaign against war, the loss of my father limbs and the use of prosthetic limbs showed me the significance of hope to those who are victims for misfortunes. The war in Afghanistan also made me realize the devastating effects of war on both soldiers and civilians.

Works Cited

Cowan, Rachel E., et al. “Recent trends in assistive technology for mobility.” Journal of Neuroengineering and Rehabilitation, vol. 9, no.1, 2012, p.20.

Halliday, Fred. Two hours that shook the world: September 11, 2001: Causes and Consequences. Saqi, 2013.

Hook, Steven W., and Spanier,John. American foreign policy since World War II. CQ Press, 2015.

Kellner, Douglas. Media spectacle and the crisis of democracy: Terrorism, war, and election battles. Routledge, 2015.

Keniston, Ann, and Quinn, Jeanne Follansbee. Literature After 9/11.Routledge, vol. 1, 2013.

Resnik, Linda, et al. “Advanced upper limb prosthetic devices: implications for upper limb prosthetic rehabilitation.” Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation vol. 93, no.4, 2012, pp. 710-717.

Sinno, Abdulkader H. Organizations at war in Afghanistan and beyond. Cornell University Press, 2015.