Name: John Baker () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 12:39:14
E-Mail: john@cougartown.com
Class: 62
Message: Here's another view of the situation.....

Name: Patti Barry () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 12:36:04
Maiden: Treckman
Class: 79
City and State: LB, CA
Message: Just wanted to share my husband's saga. Ken flew into NY from Chicago on Tuesday morning at about 8:10 am. He called me at 6:15am our time to let me know he was ok - I didn't know anything yet, so I said "Great, glad to hear it" and of course he told me the devastating news.
He drove to Utica, where his office as well as all his company offices were closed. He considered driving home, but has now decided to fly. He showed up at 4:00am for his 6:00am United flight in NY this morning. The flight was cancelled. He was then able to get a Delta flight into Cincinnati. He then boarded the Delta flight to come to LA. After taxiing, the plane went back to the gate due to a technical problem. Once at the gate, security burst onto the plane and took off the guy in front of Ken - an Arabian-looking guy. Ken said he had been extremely rude, pushing past him onto the plane. Two other guys were also causing trouble, calling the flight attendant a bitch, and being extremely rude to others. Ken said this guy had been wandering down the aisle looking for row 56 - the plane only goes to aisle 54. So they took all 3 off the plane, started searching the plane - taking apart the seats. . . The passengers were unloaded, and the flight attendant told Ken she heard the guy in front of Ken was on a FBI list. Yikes yikes yikes. After about 45 minutes, after the plane was searched, everyone was loaded back on, including the guys that were taken off. As of now he is inflight.
Obviously everyone is unnerved. Obviously we need to be tolerant of each other. Obviously life is going to change at the airports. Not all Arab-looking people are terrorists. Not all rude people are going to hijack a plane. We can't let our behaviour become as reprehensible as the barbarian fanatics by acting with prejudice and hate. However, we do need to be aware of our surroundings - active, non-apathetic people. We will need to be tolerant of security personnel trying to keep us safe. -Patti Barry

Name: Linda Farrow () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 12:32:53
E-Mail: linda.farrow@trw.com
Maiden: Elia
Class: 82
City and State: Redondo Beach, Ca
Message: I think they should build a memorial park like they did in Oklahoma. And maybe a wall there that would have the names of everyone taken from this horrible attack. From the news reports that they have been showing, the majority of people seem to be afraid to go back into a high rise tower. And I think it would bring back too many memories. A nice park, some ponds, benches, many trees seem like a peaceful setting for the lost lives there.

Name: Tony Frink () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 12:30:23
E-Mail: tfrink@microsoft.com
Class: 78
Message: This is the design I propose for the NEW World Trade Center.

Name: Mike Riley () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 12:05:57
E-Mail: mcriley@mtnhome.com
Class: 65
City and State: Moutain Home, Ar.
Message: We have to go get the rag heads over there. I hope we do it soon and very hard. I know we don't want our kids in the service to get hurt!! SO LET US OLD FARTS GO GET THE BAST$%^$#@!#%^$!!!!! They didn't let us finish nam so lets do it now. I have an old friend Becky Poteet with 2 boys in the service and hope they stay safe. John I'm not much with a bat, but I do real well with a 7mm mag. REACH OUT AND TOUCH A RAG HEAD with 150 grains of power.
ALL STAY SAFE

Name: Betty East () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 11:55:28
E-Mail: bettye@amgen.com
Maiden: Wright
Class: 74
City and State: Thousand Oaks, CA
Message: Here's the remainder of my earlier post of "An open letter to a Terrorist" by Charles Brennan.
There’s a spirit that tends to take over people who come to this country, looking for opportunity, looking for liberty, looking for freedom; even if they misuse it. The Marielistas that Castro emptied out of his prisons were overjoyed to find out how much freedom there was. First thing they did when they hit our shores, was run out and buy guns. The ones that didn’t end up dead, ended up in prisons. It was a big PITA then (especially in south Florida), but you’re only the newest PITA, not the first. You guys seem to be incapable of understanding that we don’t live in America. America lives in US! American Spirit is what it’s called. And killing a few thousand of us, or a few million of us, won’t change it. Most of the time, it’s a pretty happy-go-lucky kind of Spirit. Until we’re crossed in a cowardly manner, then it becomes an entirely different kind of Spirit. Wait until you see what we do with that Spirit, this time. Sleep tight, if you can. We’re coming.

Name: Mari Davis () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 11:37:32
E-Mail: irishrutter@hotmail.com
Maiden: Rutter
Class: 67
City and State: Texas
Message: I know my feedback is on a REALLY light note compared to what has taken place in our nation this week but I do want to take a minute to say Happy Birthday to my best friend, Margaret Sweeney Hardin, HHS class of 67. Maggie has been my best friend since we met way back in grade school at St Joe's. We've been thru heartbreaks, graduations, marriages, deaths, births, divorce and much more together. We were maids of honor for each other's weddings and godmothers to each other's children. Through all these years we've stayed best friends "Happy Birthday Sweeney".
Happy Birthday Margaret.....

Name: Jim Peppers () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 11:36:51
Class: 61
City and State: Athens, Greece
Message: Dear Cougars and Patriots,
I'm in Istanbul right now, a city that has seen its share of terrorism, and I'll soon be going back to Athens, another city that has seen a lot of terrorism against Americans. I left Athens the day after America's great tragedy. On Tuesday while I was at home I watched the whole tragedy unfold. After an hour a friend of ours from Peru and married to a Greek called in a panic. Her brother, sister, and niece all worked at the WTC. She couldn't reach anyone. We just started to pray for them. After a half an hour, our friend called back with incredible news. Each of her relatives, for different reasons, had not gone to work on Tuesday morning. An angel was with them. There are many people here that have lost loved ones as a lot of Greeks worked at the WTC. God bless the victims and their families. God Bless America, and let's all hope that our policies from now on make things better and eliminate this kind of blind twisted hatred from our planet. Love to you all,
Jim Peppers

Name: Sharon () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 11:22:01
E-Mail: hawthornehigh66@aol.com
Maiden: Moore
Class: 66
City and State: Long Beach, CA
Message: We rebuild it one story higher and at the base there should be a memorial honoring the names of the injured, dead, and missing.

Name: Jill McFarlane () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 11:09:08
Class: 1977
City and State: On the road
Message: I have mixed feelings about re-building the WTC, on one hand, yes we could say FU and do it, but make it one story higher. On the other hand, I think a memorial, like the Vietnam Wall would have a greater impact. A wall with all the names of the people we lost. Just my thoughts.

Name: Sharon Branigan () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 10:44:09
Class: 76
Message: Phil Hendrie said it last night: We rebuild the World Trade Center, ONE STORY HIGHER than it was.

Name: Dewey Storie () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 09:20:43
Class: 74
Message: Yesterday I finished my job assignment in Minnesota, so I called the airlines to see if I was going to be able to catch my flight on Friday. I was told that the airport was not open yet and that just because I was booked on a flight did not mean that I was going to get on it. Well my son is getting married on Saturday and my flight was to take me to Texas for his wedding. Not having much else could do to get there I opt to drive to Texas, I called Hertz to change my rental contract. I was told that because of the events happening around the USA, Hertz was not tacking on the extra charge for returning the car to a different place. I made the 12-hour drive to Oklahoma City and got a hotel to rest before continuing my drive to Texas. While driving I could see how we are all pulling together to get through all this. As I drove through Minnesota, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma almost every farmhouse I passed was flying an American flag at half-mast. I found this to be very moving and really showed me how we can all show our support in this time of sadness.

Name: Mike Backus () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 09:16:50
Class: '74
Message: Here's a topic for discussion. Should we rebuild the World Trade Center? I like the idea of saying, "F-U, anything you terrorists can destroy we can build back!". No doubt some folks would feel that we should live with the loss of the buildings as a reminder of the loss of human life. What do you folks think?
I say yes, but local codes may not allow it today.

Name: Ron Dokken () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 05:11:40
E-Mail: rdokk@yahoo.com
Class: 1955
City and State: Endwell, NY
Message: I too want revenge. But we must remember that the Russians fought the Afghans for 10 years, took thousands of dead, and finally limped home. Remember, we called it Russia's Viet Nam? Also we gave missiles to the Afghans - which will be used on us. Also, our "allies", the Saudis, and Kuwaites may decide to cut off our oil, and they too have been armed with our best weapons. We have a perfect example in the middle east of the probable scenario - and that is the never-ending violence between the Jews and Palestinians. Something else I fear is that our President may be goaded into action by the likes of Rather, Jennings, and Brokaw, who are only interested in a story. With the 2002 elections coming, I can just see those sanctimonious XXX's demanding that Bush DO something! There are no easy answers, and I speak as one who flew 200+ combat msns in SEA and still LOST the war. Believe me I want to nuke the bastards, but we just can't kill everyone and let God sort them out. God bless our President.
We can't sit back and say we might get an American soldier hurt, so let's just let it go; we've already had thousands killed in NY. There WILL be casualties on our side. This war WILL go on for years, not 6 weeks like Desert Storm. We'll be fighting an enemy who's hiding behind innocent people. There will be collateral damage. IT'S WAR!!! I agree, that the hatred between the Israelis and Palestinians may NEVER end; that's their war. When they bring this to New York City, that's OUR war, and I say if Bush doesn't go huntin' in the desert right now, then let's vote in someone who will. He asked for 20 billion, and Congress gives him 40 billion. Does that tell you that both sides of the aisle are united. The Afghans knocked the Russian heliocopters from the sky with with our Stingers. That's all they had besides a Springfield rifle and a stick. Don't fear ANY of the desert people, as most are our allies.
There will NEVER be a better time to do this. We have a chance to be the worlds "Orkin Man" and rid the planet of ALL Terrorist Vermin. Let's do it now.

Name: Jill McFarlane () on Friday, September 14, 2001 at 00:50:56
Class: 1977
City and State: Mission Viejo, CA
Message: I was going to post the email I recieved relating to the vigil going on tomorrow, but I see someone had already mentioned it. If any Cougars are able to take pictures or video, I think it would be awesome to have it posted on this site, so we can all see parts of the nation paying tribute to our fellow brothers and sisters we have lost. My fiance and I are going to the Central Coast, but wherever we are, we will be going outside and paying our respects. I will also have a camera with me. John, be prepared to do a lot of downloading, or whatever it is you do to post our pictures. Take care, and God Bless America!

Name: Dave 'n Laura () on Thursday, September 13, 2001 at 21:32:35
E-Mail: lgeelew@yahoo.com
Class: 75/76
City and State: Los Altos, CA
Message: There are lots of places on the web for flags if local companies are out: amflag.com, flagsusa.com, and flagstoreusa.com to name a few. (Just do a search in your favorite engine and you'll get a long list of others.) We like our Gadsden flag (don't tread on me). . .

Name: Pat Bagby () on Thursday, September 13, 2001 at 20:39:03
E-Mail: disc0pat@aol.com
Maiden: Kavanaugh
Class: 64
City and State: New York
Message: I gave my impressions of the WTC tragedy yesterday. Today I received the following from my daughter Liz, who works at a K-12 school which her son Max attends----- it's a message of hope:
Today, as the staff members of our school were gathered in the high school English teacher's classroom to discuss what we would do when the students arrived two hours after normal starting time, my eyes kept drifting over to one wall. The motto of our school (the Renaissance Charter School) is "Developing Leaders for the Renaissance of New York," and a large part of the curriculum is the study of the city of New York. One of last year's students had put together a lovely photo collage that was still up on the wall, containing large photos of a number of New York City landmarks and the skyline of Manhattan. There were various photos that contained the Towers from several angles but the picture that I found the most arresting was a photo of other downtown buildings with nothing of the World Trade Center, but the distinct shadows of towers one and two cast over all of them. Striking in their absence, they were.
Also this morning, 48 hours after the first explosion, the wind drifted north for the first time, and the smell that pervaded the air in Jackson Heights, Queens (about 7 or 8 miles from the WTC) was ugly. Fetid. Max and I walked the long block from the number 7 train with our mouths shut. It smelt like smoke from an electrical fire, was gritty like concrete, but it tasted like blood. Like your mouth does when you come from a drilling at the dentist, that coppery taste tinged with burnt teeth. I still taste it inside my air-conditioned apartment now at 5 p.m.
The eeriest, an hour or so ago. On the platform at Queensboro Plaza, right at the foot of the bridge (59th Street, to you out-of-towners). Max and I sat waiting for the N train, about, oh, 4 or 5 miles from the WTC, and we stared at the dust cloud. Some of the surrounding buildings are still difficult to see through the bright yellowish-white haze. As I sat, my eyes experienced that imprint that one gets after staring so long, as if one's retinas are being fried, and the image started to shift a bit. Which was when I saw a phantom of the towers. I blinked and it was gone. I looked away, looked back, had the same effect. The towers were a good deal taller than their neighbors and that is the image I perceived. Not supernatural phantoms, but psychological ones. I now think I can vaguely understand what amputees go through when they sense feelings in lost limbs. I, and millions of others, have lost something that was never supposed to go away, but did. My mind refuses to accept this on many levels.
I have also been thinking today of my school's motto. Renaissance means rebirth, and "the renaissance of New York" is truly an apt expression right now. After Max and I boarded the N train at Queensboro Plaza, I again envisioned (without looking this time) the phantom towers, and in my mind their shadow morphed upwards into a large thunderbird, or better, phoenix, rising from the ashes.
On Tuesday, when the teacher I work with asked our sixth graders what word best expressed their feelings at the time (most of them said things like "scared" and "sad"), they turned her question back on us and asked for our words. My word was "helpless." For many reasons, not the least of which is that shadow image of the phoenix rising over the Manhattan skyline, my word today is "hopeful."
Just some thoughts I wanted to share. I hope you and yours are safe and sound.
Love, Liz

Name: Loretta Cuiper () on Thursday, September 13, 2001 at 20:28:43
E-Mail: LCuiper@aol.com
Maiden: Morelli
Class: 62
City and State: Hawthorne, Ca
Message: Today as I passed Hawthorne Blvd, there waving along the Blvd were rows of FLAGS on the light poles. All business had their Flags waving. Streets and streets of homes have their Flags out. Also, the pride I had for the Students of HAWTHORNE HIGH, most students had FLAGS on their cars, seeing that parking lot today, was just such a powerful sign that these children are very tuned in to the world, they are standing strong, they are seeing their world change. These are young 14 to 18 year olds, they understand what is happening to the world. All the talking of to come together has shown with the Students of HAWTHORNE HIGH. Always a Coug GOD BLESS

Name: Denny Unfried () on Thursday, September 13, 2001 at 19:56:46
Class: 55
Message: This, from a Canadian newspaper, is worth sharing. America: The Good Neighbor. Widespread but only partial news coverage was given recently to a remarkable editorial broadcast from Toronto by Gordon Sinclair, a Canadian television commentator. What follows is the full text of his trenchant remarks as printed in the Congressional Record:
"This Canadian thinks it is time to speak up for the Americans as the most generous and possibly the least appreciated people on all the earth.
Germany, Japan and, to a lesser extent, Britain and Italy were lifted out of the debris of war by the Americans who poured in billions of dollars and forgave other billions in debts. None of these countries is today paying even the interest on its remaining debts to the United States.
When France was in danger of collapsing in 1956, it was the Americans who propped it up, and their reward was to be insulted and swindled on the streets of Paris. I was there. I saw it.
When earthquakes hit distant cities, it is the United States that hurries in to help. This spring, 59 American communities were flattened by tornadoes. Nobody helped.
The Marshall Plan and the Truman Policy pumped billions of dollars into discouraged countries. Now newspapers in those countries are writing about the decadent, warmongering Americans.
I'd like to see just one of those countries that is gloating over the erosion of the United States dollar build its own airplane. Does any other country in the world have a plane to equal the Boeing Jumbo Jet, the Lockheed Tri-Star, or the Douglas DC10? If so, why don't they fly them? Why do all the International lines except Russia fly American Planes?
Why does no other land on earth even consider putting a man or woman on the moon? You talk about Japanese technocracy, and you get radios. You talk about German technocracy, and you get automobiles. You talk about American technocracy, and you find men on the moon - not once, but several times - and safely home again.
You talk about scandals, and the Americans put theirs right in the store window for everybody to look at. Even their draft-dodgers are not pursued and hounded. They are here on our streets, and most of them, unless they are breaking Canadian laws, are getting American dollars from ma and pa at home to spend here.
When the railways of France, Germany and India were breaking down through age, it was the Americans who rebuilt them. When the Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central went broke, nobody loaned them an old caboose. Both are still broke.
I can name you 5000 times when the Americans raced to the help of other people in trouble. Can you name me even one time when someone else raced to the Americans in trouble? I don't think there was outside help even during the San Francisco earthquake.
Our neighbors have faced it alone, and I'm one Canadian who is damned tired of hearing them get kicked around. They will come out of this thing with their flag high. And when they do, they are entitled to thumb their nose at the lands that are gloating over their present troubles. I hope Canada is not one of those."
"Stand proud, America!"
I give up. Here it is in print. Thanks Denny.... How about coming to Cruise Night? Lots of people are asking about you.

Name: Terri Perkins () on Thursday, September 13, 2001 at 19:41:44
E-Mail: terri_perkins@yahoo.com
Maiden: Perkins
Class: 1992
City and State: El Segundo, Ca.
Message: It's not easy trying to understand * How the world can be so cold, stealing the souls of man * Cloudy skies rain sown on all your dreams * You wrestle with the fear and doubt sometimes it's hard, but you gotta believe.
There's a better place where our Father waits * And every tear he'll wipe away * The darkness will be gone, the weak will be strong * Hold on to your faith there will come a day.
Wars are raging, lives are scattered * Innocence is lost and hopes are shattered * The old are forgotten, the children are forsaken * In this world we're living in, isn't anything sacred.
There's a better place where our Father waits * And every tear he'll wipe away * The darkness will be gone, the weak will be strong * Hold on to your faith there will come a day.
Song will ring out, down those golden streets * The voices of earth, the angels will sing * Every knee will bow, sin will have no trace * In the glory of His amazing grace * Every knee will bow sin will have no trace * In the glory of his amazing grace, there will come a day. There will come a day. I know there's coming a day.
-Faith Hill
This is such a beautiful song and so powerful. Keep your faith Cougs

Name: Terry A. Schwedler () on Thursday, September 13, 2001 at 19:30:29
E-Mail: terrys3330@hotmail.com
Message: Thanks for your great web site. I am one of your neighbors who moved to Redondo Beach in 1949 and graduated from Aviation High School in 1961. Thanks for the memories, Terry Hickory, NC
A "Falcon" in our midst. I think all that's left of Aviation High is the gym. They turned it into the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center, didn't they? Anyway, thanks for checking in Terry and come on back anytime.

Name: Mike Backus () on Thursday, September 13, 2001 at 18:57:44
Class: '74
Message: John, when were you EVER politically correct?!? If you were holding back, Buddy, it never showed! :-D
I believe in calling a spade a spade........well, you know what I mean.

Name: Walter Holt () on Thursday, September 13, 2001 at 18:41:44
Class: 66
City and State: Orange,CA
Message: I can appreciate the thought of someone being concerned about exercising caution. But I am fully prepared for anyone to show up at my door to prevent me from exercising my god given right to express my patriotism which I feel in my life I have repeatedly demonstrated. I am not ashamed of any information I supply about myself in this forum or any other. It truly would be a sad day indeed when we as Americans would have to be afraid of any fanatics here or elsewhere coming to our doors. So I will say out loud to coin a phrase "I"M MAD AS HELL AND I'M NOT GOING TO TAKE IT ANY MORE" maybe we should be shouting that from the rooftops loud enough to be heard round the world. I want those fanatics to be scared *&%$#@less and any one who harbors them enough to be willing to give them up or suffer the conseqeunces. Yes John I will try to make it to cruise night if I can find a ride.
Cruise Night it is then......