Prologue: Endless Robotic Singing Pays Big Dividends

The Congressional Choir loves you.

Caution!

This whole dismal 9/11 thing is complicated and boring, even when it's carelessly explained with an unimpressive list of irrelevant details and a rare cloudiness of so-called vision. That's why it doesn't make any sense to learn about it.

Nobody believes any of the following. But that doesn't matter because it's all true, or at least some of it might be.

Too Horrible to Contemplate

For those of us who remember September 11th, 2001, the events of the day seemed too horrible to contemplate and the future suddenly appeared ominous.

But with the sober perspective that comes from two decades of keen hindsight, we're bound to admit that things could have turned out much worse than they did, in more ways than we can count.

Spectacularly Blessed

Relatively few of us realize it, but we have been spectacularly blessed by countless events that either happened or didn't happen, before, during, or after that horrible day.

in case you don't know


Our timely lucky breaks have been so numerous and so varied that we can only touch on a few of them in a demented little series such as this.

Incomplete but Sufficient

Therefore, rather than trying to provide a comprehensive list of all the lucky circumstances that have led us to the glorious situation we now enjoy, I have selected a small subset, admittedly incomplete but certainly sufficient to hint at the enormous scope of our collective good fortune.

In short, our endless robotic singing of "God Bless America" appears to have paid big dividends.

Photo Essay:
Battle Hymn of the Republic


Mine eyes have seen the glory


of the coming of the Lord


He is trampling out the vintage


where the grapes of wrath are stored


He hath loosed the fateful lightning


of His terrible swift sword


His truth is marching on


Glory, glory, Hallelujah!


Glory, glory, Hallelujah!


Glory, glory, Hallelujah!


His truth is marching on


Listen: Smokey Robinson: The Tears Of A Clown


if there's a smile on my face
It's only there trying to fool the public
But when it comes down to fooling you
Now honey, that's quite a different subject
...
Don't let my glad expression
Give you the wrong impression
Don't let this smile I wear
Make you think that I don't care