9-11 plus six

Today, I looked again at some video and thought about this day six years ago.
The memories and emotions came roaring back.
Some of the things I've come across either by viewing them in some form or thinking about them in my mind are:
The images of family and friends standing quietly behind Gov. George Pataki with fliers bearing their pictures and contact information.
The men and women who decided that jumping was better than burning alive.
The heroes and heroines who fought back on Flight 93 and somehow prevented what was sure to be more death and destruction.
The photo of a taxicab with a hole in its windshield from a light pole the aircraft flying in to the Pentagon knocked down.
I'm still left with the impression that acts like those we experienced on Sept. 11, 2001 can only be met with the sword.
I wish the Iraqi situation was a lot more clear and that an "exit strategy" was easy to achieve. I think we should redefine our goals in Iraq and begin a reasonable draw-down of forces, but in such a way as to not leave the impression that we consider the situation "lost."
Retreat from this fight should never be a motivation for reduction of forces - only that we've achieved a reasonable sense that we've done all we can to leave Iraq better off than we found it and our enemies in disarray and defeat.
We cannot back down from this fight. They've proven what they'll do when they see a moment of weakness.
We must remember this day for the rest of our lives and let it guide our nation's future actions as it relates to protecting its principles and most importantly, its people.