8 years ago today, almost to the minute, is a moment in time that our generation will never forget.  A moment of silence for all those who were killed at the Trade Centers, the Pentagon, and Shanksville Pa today.  Something, that changed us all forever.

Here in Lubbock I was on my way to work at 4:20AM and saw lights on in a park by the Loop. During the night someone had skillfully arranged and placed an American flag for every American who died in these coordinated attacks. This included those on all the planes.

The city had left cops there to watch over it and halogen light generators to keep the lights on the flag as required by law and by decency.

There are those here who consider me an old opinionated a**hole. I am not that old!

But as a true American Marine, on my way to do dialysis on hardened criminals at the prison, I had to choke back. Then got to the prison to find each one of our prisoners feeling the same way.

All of them that day talked about where they were and what they were doing when the attacks happened and how darned mad they were and are still.

God Bless America. I might be old but by God I can fight with more than my mouth. Never forget 9/11 and those we lost to these animals.

Thanks to Ms. Kitty for this post.

I'm sure everybody here thinks I'm some liberal (at best).

I had to go to Salt Lake City to pick up my then-wife after she was stranded in Washington state on 9/11. My daughter and I drove up from El Paso to meet her halfway.

In Spanish Corner, Utah I stopped for gas at one of those places literally in the middle of nowhere on the interstate that sold gas, fast food and tourist stuff.

I gassed up and then went in to pay and get a bite. There were 5 men in there, obviously Middle Eastern, getting food in front of me. I wasn't consciously focusing about them that I recall. But I do recall getting madder and madder. They were speaking to each other in low voices and speaking Farsi and that made me even madder and more suspicious.

They walked out shortly before me and I found them parked a few spaces from us. I actually was in turmoil, wondering whether to verbally assail them or just shoot them and get it over with. Seriously.

My daughter was in 2nd grade and was in the car by then and asked "Daddy are we ready to go now?" and that made me come to my senses. I had basically focused on those men and my hatred of them.

As I pulled away I noticed their Suburban had Canadian plates and that made me start getting mad again.

Today I look back and think how I did not know who those men were, what their reason for being in the US were and how nervous they were as I watched them CLOSELY! They might have been doctors, tourists, engineers or terrorists. They might have been much better armed than I was as well.

I just know I'm glad I did not do what I urgently wanted to do to those men that day. I couldn't have really hated them as I did not even know them. I just wanted to lash out in my blind anger, kind of like your daughter.