Speech: Patriots Day, 2002
Speech Delivered At The First National Patriots Day Celebration
By Crook County Judge Scott R. Cooper In Prineville, Oregon
Sept. 11, 2002, commemoration on the Courthouse lawn
On this day, September 11, we pause for a moment to Remember.
We Remember this day one year ago as the day we who live in the United States of America discovered that for all our wealth and power, we are not invincible.
But let us also remember that from tragedy emerged triumph as we discovered anew that the American spirit does not tremble in fear or linger long in a state of despair but rather that unity and a common sense of purpose define this nation and its people.
We Remember this day one year ago as the day that the urge to hate overcame respect for human life and we doubted if only for a moment our belief in the essential goodness of humanity.
But let us also remember that for every one of those who was willing to sacrifice his life to further his evil aims, hundreds more men and women in this country freely gave their lives to rescue and assist others whom they did not know and whose paths they might never have crossed except for this tragedy. Their selflessness, their sacrifice, their sense of willingness to serve are the defining qualities of this nation and its people.
We Remember this day one year ago as the day that people whose race, religion and nationality are foreign to many of us perpetrated a violent crime upon the American people.
But let us also remember that while the natural inclination of any other nation attacked in so vile and brutal a manner might have been to turn on those outsiders among us and seek revenge, this nation met violence with calls for justice and tolerance and respect for the diversity that has defined and made our nation great for over two and quarter centuries.
The world in which we live today is in some ways a very different world from the world 365 days ago. As a nation, we have lost our innocence. As citizens we have sacrificed some of our freedom. As a people, we have lost our sense of security. Saddest of all, we have lost our idealism, and we no longer embrace the naïve notion that the dream of the American way of life and the pursuit of opportunity American–style are the goals of the rest of the world.
But as we mourn our losses, let us not lose sight, one year later, of what we have also gained:
Before Sept. 11, we were a fractured people, lacking in unity and more focused on what was wrong with our country than what was right. Today, we have newfound respect for the unique privileges that bind us together as Americans and for the hard-won rights and opportunities that the Red, White and Blue banner of our nation represents.
Before Sept. 11, we took for granted our basic Freedoms--Freedom of Religion, Freedom of the Press, Freedom from Want and Freedom from Fear.
Today, we have newfound appreciation for our right to worship as we please, and we protect that freedom, for Christians, Jews and Muslims alike.
Today, we understand better the importance of guaranteeing access to the airwaves for many points of views, from the reporting of CNN to the broadcasts of Al Jazeerah
Today, more than ever, we are grateful for the abundance we enjoy--abundant food, shelter and medicine, and we share that abundance, even in those places where they love to hate us, places such as Afghanistan, Iraq and Palestine
Today, while we cannot help but recognize that the destruction of the United States and its way of life is the goal of some, our primary interest is to use our might to secure peace for the rest of the world.
Today is a momentous day. It is a day when we pause to Remember all that is best about our country, and to recommit ourselves to the preservation of the freedoms we hold dear.
To those individuals motivated by envy, hatred and religious intolerance who would try bring down this nation, we have but one response: Do not underestimate us, for we are Americans.
Our power lies not in the tall buildings that dot our skylines or the monuments of our great nation. Take them all away, and you will still find America standing tall. For our strength lies in the character of our people, in our unwavering faith in God and one another, and in our commitment to our way of life.
We say this to you: you may bend us and you may bruise us, but we are Americans, and we will never, ever break.
By Crook County Judge Scott R. Cooper In Prineville, Oregon
Sept. 11, 2002, commemoration on the Courthouse lawn
On this day, September 11, we pause for a moment to Remember.
We Remember this day one year ago as the day we who live in the United States of America discovered that for all our wealth and power, we are not invincible.
But let us also remember that from tragedy emerged triumph as we discovered anew that the American spirit does not tremble in fear or linger long in a state of despair but rather that unity and a common sense of purpose define this nation and its people.
We Remember this day one year ago as the day that the urge to hate overcame respect for human life and we doubted if only for a moment our belief in the essential goodness of humanity.
But let us also remember that for every one of those who was willing to sacrifice his life to further his evil aims, hundreds more men and women in this country freely gave their lives to rescue and assist others whom they did not know and whose paths they might never have crossed except for this tragedy. Their selflessness, their sacrifice, their sense of willingness to serve are the defining qualities of this nation and its people.
We Remember this day one year ago as the day that people whose race, religion and nationality are foreign to many of us perpetrated a violent crime upon the American people.
But let us also remember that while the natural inclination of any other nation attacked in so vile and brutal a manner might have been to turn on those outsiders among us and seek revenge, this nation met violence with calls for justice and tolerance and respect for the diversity that has defined and made our nation great for over two and quarter centuries.
The world in which we live today is in some ways a very different world from the world 365 days ago. As a nation, we have lost our innocence. As citizens we have sacrificed some of our freedom. As a people, we have lost our sense of security. Saddest of all, we have lost our idealism, and we no longer embrace the naïve notion that the dream of the American way of life and the pursuit of opportunity American–style are the goals of the rest of the world.
But as we mourn our losses, let us not lose sight, one year later, of what we have also gained:
Before Sept. 11, we were a fractured people, lacking in unity and more focused on what was wrong with our country than what was right. Today, we have newfound respect for the unique privileges that bind us together as Americans and for the hard-won rights and opportunities that the Red, White and Blue banner of our nation represents.
Before Sept. 11, we took for granted our basic Freedoms--Freedom of Religion, Freedom of the Press, Freedom from Want and Freedom from Fear.
Today, we have newfound appreciation for our right to worship as we please, and we protect that freedom, for Christians, Jews and Muslims alike.
Today, we understand better the importance of guaranteeing access to the airwaves for many points of views, from the reporting of CNN to the broadcasts of Al Jazeerah
Today, more than ever, we are grateful for the abundance we enjoy--abundant food, shelter and medicine, and we share that abundance, even in those places where they love to hate us, places such as Afghanistan, Iraq and Palestine
Today, while we cannot help but recognize that the destruction of the United States and its way of life is the goal of some, our primary interest is to use our might to secure peace for the rest of the world.
Today is a momentous day. It is a day when we pause to Remember all that is best about our country, and to recommit ourselves to the preservation of the freedoms we hold dear.
To those individuals motivated by envy, hatred and religious intolerance who would try bring down this nation, we have but one response: Do not underestimate us, for we are Americans.
Our power lies not in the tall buildings that dot our skylines or the monuments of our great nation. Take them all away, and you will still find America standing tall. For our strength lies in the character of our people, in our unwavering faith in God and one another, and in our commitment to our way of life.
We say this to you: you may bend us and you may bruise us, but we are Americans, and we will never, ever break.
posted by Scott Cooper | 4:46 PM
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