"This great nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper. So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself - nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance."
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt uttered these words to the American people during one of the greatest eras of uncertainty in our history.
The fear, terror and pain that we all felt on Sept. 11, 2001, was part of a long list of challenging experiences engrained in the American psyche.
Tyranny has been a constant specter on our doorstep.
Our forefathers fought for the cause of liberty against the largest army in the world.
At another point, the nation was split in half by one of the most vicious injustices in human history. Citizens fought and killed their fellow men, and the country was on the brink of sacrificing many liberties for the sake of preserving national unity.
When President Roosevelt spoke the words above, our growing industrial nation was facing the prospect of becoming a Third World country.
The second time the world went to war, we were provoked by attacks on our own soil, throwing us into a conflict with another great evil.
Through these trying times, the nation prevailed. We are still here.
When the planes hit the Twin Towers and the Pentagon, the nation froze. Again, it was thrust into a moment of great uncertainty and fear.
Was the nation "paralyzed" by a "nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror?"
To some extent, we again faced the threat of creeping tyranny. Not only were our enemies abroad, but also domestic. Our domestic enemies were not necessarily individuals but ideas that sought to sacrifice liberty for security.
Some remnants of this tyranny remains, but we are still here. We are still writing this editorial for you to read, unabridged and uncensored.
It cannot be said that the nation did not undergo sweeping changes.
The government might have, again, gone too far in its attempts to protect its citizens. If you have been to the airport recently, you might share this sentiment.
But we are still here.
After a decade, the attacks still remain vivid in the minds of many Americans, especially those involved or who had loved ones involved.
And although every year we take this time to remember the attacks, it is even more important to remember that we are still here.
Let's resurrect the towers, higher, more powerful and more vibrant that ever.
Let's remind those who attacked us that 10 years later, we are still here.
