Unhappy Anniversary

It's 9/11/05, do you know where Al Qaeda's leaders are? Some of them are in Pakistan, making threats against Los Angeles. (California is quite the hotspot for Islamofascist terrorism these days.) In less unsettling news, the current season of remembrance has seen the unveiling of a memorial for those lost on "The Flight That Fought Back," United 93.

The design relies largely on dramatic landscaping to create an inspiring, contemplative scene throughout the seasons. (Click here for the full presentation.) I haven't had a chance to watch the Discovery Channel movie that recreates the fateful flight, but I hope to see it this week. The DC community -- and the nation -- were spared a physical and emotional catastrophe by the heroes of Flight 93. One was, of course, a buddy to some of my friends in the gay rugby world. I'm looking forward to visiting the site in Shanksville when it is complete.

Closer to home, organizers are making speedy progress on a different style of memorial at the crash site of American Airlines Flight 77. Interestingly, the Pentagon site will rise beneath an altogether unrelated monument of spectular scale -- the U.S. Air Force Memorial. This three-spired stainless-steel structure will rival the Washington Monument in height and prominence. From its location on an Arlington hillside next to I-395, "Soaring to Glory" will become an iconic marker for the southern approach to the capital city when completed in 2006.