Project 2,996 was started in 2006, to mark the fifth anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. I thought it was a wonderful way to ensure that the individuals who were killed were not lost in political soundbites and patriotic fervor. I put a lot of myself into writing the tribute, and I will honor the memory of Chris Slattery all my days.
I spent a few days in 2006 reading through the tributes others had written. In fact, it seemed as though most people who wrote tributes made a point of visiting as many other bloggers as they could, leaving links for people to follow. I could see a remarkable sense of community building, as I saw the same names in the comment sections, as I received comments from other bloggers. Some of my current blogging buddies, in fact, are people I met through Project 2,996.
In 2007 and 2008, I simply linked back to the tribute I'd already written. I wasn't aware that Project 2,996 was ongoing until I got an email in mid-August asking if I wanted to participate again this year. Of course I said I would. And again, I spent the better part of two days reading through the other tributes. And I got very depressed. Not saddened by the tragic loss of human life, but depressed by what a different experience it was this time around.
First, I was utterly disheartened by how many people failed to honor their commitment to the project. They said they would write a tribute, and didn't. I know that life gets in the way -- boy do I know that! -- but even now, 11 days later a random browsing found that 10 percent of the people who volunteered to write a tribute didn't, as though the lives lost weren't important enough to remember. That makes me very sad.
Second, it seems as though very few people made any effort to visit the tributes posted by others. I have over 60 comments on my post, but I visited and left comments at over 500 blogs. At most of those blogs, I was the first or second person to comment, and even now, hardly any of the tributes I visited this morning have more than two or three comments. There is certainly no sense of communal bonding in this year's effort.
Third, I was terribly upset by the politicizing of the memorials. More than a few of them veer off into attacks on President Obama, as though the direction in which he would like to lead the country somehow dishonors the memory of those who have died. Quite frankly, I think that the memory of the dead is more greatly dishonored by those who raise the spectre of "socialism" in their so-called tributes. Several people were outraged that the President called for September 11 to be a national day of service, even though the idea for that came from families of several of those who died that day.
I was most distraught by the general tone of the blogs I visited: It seems as though this year bloggers on the left side of the aisle weren't interested in honoring those who had died. Over ninety percent of the blogs I visited were papered with invectives against President Obama. I remember seeing lots of flags on blogs for the 5th anniversary, lots of yellow ribbons in support of our troops. I also remember seeing a few countdowns until President Bush was out of office, a few yellow ribbons urging that our troops be brought home.
I know that I did NOT see angry screeds against President Bush incorporated into the pages honoring the 2,996 who had died. I know that I did NOT see grotesque pictures of President Bush as Hitler or as The Joker. I didn't even see banners screaming that the President was a liar, even though by the time 2006 rolled around, that accusation would clearly have been well founded.
I did leave one or two comments on some of these pages, suggesting that it might have been more respectful for the personal politics to have been set aside. But I didn't bookmark them, to see if the authors responded. In 2006, I
wrote that "I found myself feeling a powerful connection to the other tribute authors." This time around, I'm afraid, I felt a powerful disconnect, miserably isolated.
I felt isolated not only as a supporter of President Obama (and his "socialist" health care reform), but also as a human being. I wanted to read the tributes and join with others in remembering those who had died. But so much of what I read was more about angry politics than about solemn remembering. So much of what I read was more about questioning birthplaces and decrying health care plans than about honoring those who sacrificed their lives to save others. So much of what I read was screaming about patriotism, instead of actually reflecting patriotism.
I'm not sure what I was most aware of as I read through more than 500 blogs: sorrow for the lives lost that tragic day, despair at the loss of community that I felt at the beginning of this Project, or dread of the effects of the sheer vitriol that I encountered with every click of my mouse. But it was a terrible experience, one that left me depressed on so many levels.
Will I continue to participate in Project 2,996? Yes. I will remember Chris Slattery as long as my heart beats and honor him as long as my computer has pixels. But I may not visit so many tributes in the years to come. It was far too discouraging and disheartening.
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