Shanksville, PA is the town where the jet hijacked by terrorists crashed on
9/11. It is close to Johnstown, where I taught at the Univ. of Pittsburgh
campus for 32 years. In today's New York Times, there is an article about
the impact of 9/11 on the folks there. Most are rabid Republicans and
strong supporters of George W. Bush. However, there are a good many people
who are skeptical that Bush's policies are making them safer, and many who worry
that no one cares about the terrible state of the economy. Average
income and education levels are below national average.
When a local grade school teacher told the reporter that she was worried
about U.S. policy in Iraq and how it might be damaging our trustworthiness
abroad, another teacher burst in with the following: "I know I get defensive
about this stuff, but with what we have been through and wit my husband in the
military, I have to trust President George W. Bush and I support him 100
percent." . . . As a sign of her admiration, Ms. Edwards said, she bought her
husband a special Christmas gift: a military action-figure doll of George W.
Bush.
Michael Yates
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