This morning, MSNBC ran the entire coverage of the September 11 tragedy that had appeared on the Today Show. It ran as if it was happening now. Ed and I watched some of it, but since we saw it for real and it was a painful memory, we tuned out after a while. However, if one was just really young when it first happened, watching the whole thing would, I think, really bring it home to them.

There is a survivor story that hasn’t been told. A man, whose story will be on tonight (I think on the Discovery channel, but am not sure) fell from an upper floor in the towers and a blast of air from another explosion swooped in under him and he floated down. He hasn’t told his story before now because of the painful memories and because of survivor’s guilt. Ed said he doesn’t want to watch that either.

I got a piece of mail from an outfit calling itself something like “Saving Social Security and Medicare”. I was urged to sign a petition directed to Senator Bill Nelson of Florida, a Democrat, and to President Obama, encouraging them to save these programs and to become a member for a mere $12. I scribbled a note and sent it back – it went sort of like this: Dear Mr. Richter, Pardon the informality of this note. I am puzzled why you are directing your petition to Senator Nelson and President Obama. The real problem is Connie Mack, the Republican Senator in our State. Maybe you haven’t been keeping up with the situation.

I don’t think the President nor Senator Nelson need my urging. They already have my back.

P.S. Please remove my name from your sucker list.

And I posted the following on Joe Scarborough’s (Morning Joe every day on MSNBC) Face Book page:

Dear Joe,
This morning (9/11) you are giving Romney tips on how to get elected, lamenting his lack of specifics, his lack of focus on what he believes (that I believe is anything convenient at any particular moment). You disagreed with Mica (incidentally, you were unspeakably rude to laugh in her face while she was expressing her opinion) that Romney was hanging on to G. W. Bush’s policies. I believe he is and that is precisely why he is not explaining himself.

Meanwhile, why, in any deity’s name, would you want to give pointers to this exquisite disaster who sees himself as a solver of all problems but won’t say how he will do it. Do you really want him to win just because he is a Republican? You lament, also, that he is unfairly tied to the Tea Party. Guess again. The Tea Party and Grover Norquist are convinced that Romney will be their puppet and, frankly, they have a point since he has caved to their views in every instance when he has had a forum to differ.

Romney not only has no strong single philosophy that we can discern, he is also such a wus, that he can’t stand up to the extremists in his own party. We all know that if he had done so, he would not have gotten the nomination. A better man than he (McCain) ran afoul of the same dynamic and it cost him dearly since I sincerely believe that the inclusion of Palin on the ticket was his downfall. I am thankful that I am not the only voter who found her totally unqualified and personally offensive in most of her views and voted her down. No, her endearing little wink, did not impress me.

Recently on your network, one of your colleagues reminded us that Nixon said “Run Right in the primaries, and be a centrist during the general election.” Every time Romney expresses an opinion that does not reflect the views of Right Wing lunacy, they pull on his leash and he comes crawling back to their view. Do you really want him to be president? Just because he’s Republican? You are clinging to a Party that has been hijacked. The thing to do is change THAT. If you were running today, you would have no chance because you are not yet a lunatic. (Joe is a former Republican U.S. representative from Florida who left politics to become a news man.)

Dot’s all … Teal