I don't normally blog serious matters. Actually, I don't take a lot of things too seriously, but this post is an outlet for the sticky, analytical political science student to shine through for a change.

For years, my favorite historical topic aside from the Lewis and Clark expedition has been the political and cultural ramifications of 9/11. Perhaps I feel such a strong personal connection because I was there and can remember the events of that morning clear as day, as they unfurled in real time. Perhaps it's because I grew up in Bellevue, Nebraska- home of  Strategic Air Command-where President Bush and the infamous "war button" were bunkered that day. Maybe as a New Yorker, I mourn the toppled piece of our skyline and the good families from Brooklyn, the island, the suburbs, and beyond who were torn apart in minutes.

It could be a lot of things, but I believe it is because I am an American who witnessed those images firsthand that drives me to have such personal stake in the matter.

I've maintained for years that it's time to move on: if you were there, you will never forget. Unfortunately, our children, who were either unborn or too young to know the difference, will never truly understand the grief and sense of vulnerability faced by America that day. They'll come to respect the day and its memory and the thousands of lives lost. That's alright. It's good enough. Such attrocities should be held as an example for strength, fearlessness, and progress...not an excuse to crumble. We should continue to grieve, but with heads held high, pushing forward in the face of the different difficulties and adversities unique to this day and age.

However, the one thing that can't seem to be relived, that our children and successors will never know, or even begin to imagine, is the sense of unity those tragedies brought to our country. I fear that the rising generation, tomorrow's leaders, will only know unity when it is the correct shade of blue or red. They will inherit a nation not of Americans, but of Democrats and Republicans, and a majority of undecided individuals deemed as "too scared" or "too weak" to pledge their loyalty.

Could it be that the horrors of 9/11 came to be a blessing in disguise? When the World Trade Center fell, we weren't red or blue, Christian or not, black or white, rich or poor. We were Americans. When United 93 crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, President Bush was not a lying, deceptive politician with all of the right money and powerful friends- he was our commander-in-chief.
For better or worse, for a blink of an eye, we cast aside our differences to heal the wounded, mourn the dead, and hold both each other and a country pushed to its knees.

But today, the first Twitter remark from my president was "The election is in 8 weeks. Don't forget to register!"
I realize Mr. Obama is leader of the free world- he has bigger fish to fry in comparison to answering Facebook messages or giving a shoutout to @gov_mitt_romney. Some intern or fellowship recipient wrote that Tweet.

And that's the worst part.

A generation who has yet to really feel the pain of a wounded nation looks upon recovery with apathy. They don't understand the divide in our political structure, other than it is their duty as an informed young citizen to make sure that divide only deepens because one side is RIGHT and the other is WRONG.
They have never experienced the love and unity we as Americans are capable of…perhaps myself included.

Rather than running archived footage of Towers 1 and 2 falling and the Pentagon burning, reopening the scars and reliving the sorrow, we should honor the lives lost, the bravery of the first responders, and the sacrifices of our men and women in uniform by achieving political harmony, if only for 24 hours.

There's no need to revisit of those terrible events…if anything, I wish I could forget such harrowing images, and instead take with me the sense of camaraderie, love, solidarity I felt towards my fellow citizens.

Today it's the American spirit and the people--each and every one of us--that make this country great that should be honored.