I'm not an avid news watcher. I prefer reading the news. That makes my timing for turning on the TV, just as the second crash was about to take place, all the more remarkable.
A couple of seconds was all it took to glue me to the TV for the rest of the day.
Since then, I have discussed conspiracy theories and the issue of terrorism vs act of war. I have no more answers now than I did that clear September morning. Whatever was behind the attack, whatever came after, I can only claim one thing: my unshaken faith that there are heroes in the world. They are the men and women, professional and volunteer, who tried to help in a near helpless situation.
A veteran is someone who, at one point in his/her life, wrote a blank check made payable to "The United States of America," for an amount of "up to and including my life."
Subsitute "My country/communitee/fellow being(s)" for "The United States of America" and you have a fair definition of hero. It certainly applies to the veterans of 9/11.