Why It Can Happen

This is the first blog of a series on why and how I believe we can have honest, significant change in America.

It's hard to feel good about the direction the country is going. The system is broken, and everyone knows it. Year after year we find ourselves disappointed with our leaders and laws.

Is there hope?

September 11, 2001 was a horrific day. It was a tragedy of unimaginable magnitude that struck deep into our hearts and tore the image of invulnerability that we have so long clung to as a nation. It affected all of us.

But it also revealed our character. Watching the news in the days that followed, it was not the images of planes crashing into buildings, nor towers crumbling to the ground, nor casualty statistics that held my attention. It was the rescue workers, the President, the charity—our country—that inspired me. I did not cry when the buildings fell. I did not cry when I learned that one of my friends was in the building and did not make it out--though I did grieve. But my eyes still well when I think of the image of a firefighter who was being interviewed after 16 hours of grueling, unrewarded rescue work. He wore a helmet with an American flag on it as he told the reporter (who looked twice as exhausted as the man covered in soot and sweat next to him) that he would not stop working until they had found everyone they could. “These colors don’t run,” he said, pointing to his helmet.

Millions upon millions of dollars in charity poured in for the families that were directly affected by the tragedy. Volunteers and service personnel worked tirelessly to provide immediate assistance and then to stabilize the lives of the victims’ families. Rescuers and construction workers sifted through the rubble to find survivors, and then toiled to clean-up the remnants of once-great buildings and return normalcy to the city of New York and the Pentagon.

And, whether you like him or not, we were all proud of our President for going out to the disaster site. Against the stern counsel of the Secret Service, George W. Bush went to the remains of the towers, stood on a pile of rubble and shook hands with those rescuers. He spoke through a megaphone and inspired their efforts. He helped unite a country.

It just didn’t last.