BOATLIFT: Boats of 9/11 (I Believe in America Part 2)

I am calling this post "I Believe in America - part 2" (Part 1 is here)





This video is probably one of the most important you will ever watch. It shows America - and her sons and daughters - at her best.


In his telling of the events of 9/11 a couple of months back, Jack Delaney told of how he found some of his injured staff:

'[...] they were all at the water's edge. I went there and found them, and about 10 of them were hurt. I shuttled several of them on a boat to the New Jersey side of the harbor, then returned back to the rubble, ..." (here)

Now he has forwarded this video to me, and it tells the story of amazing Americans:

"..the thing that was the best was, everybody was helping everybody..."

On 9/11, for the first time in over a century, boats - usually an afterthought - were the only way out of Manhatten.

"[...]A radio call went out: 'All available boats,' and within 15 to 20 minutes, there were boats all across the horizon: ferries, party boats, private boats, came together just that fast...hundreds of boats converged..."

"[...]...Out of nowhere, people were coming: Please don't leave us here. We need help..."

"[...]It was not a question for any of us of 'how many are you allowed to take on your boat? It became 'how many can you get on?' We went back and forth all day long..."

"[...]Average people all stepped up....

"[...]I never want to say: 'I should have'..."

As my long time readers know, I resist the label "average" when talking about Americans. No such person in the Americans I know and love.


As one boat owner says: It was morally the right thing to do.."


That, right there, is why I believe - I will ALWAYS believe - in America.


"RoadToResilience"