Today was the 9th anniversary of 9/11 and I have little to say, other than to commemorate the people who lost their lives in that tragedy. Such random acts of violence seem senseless because they are. We try and make sense of them by putting them into some sort of context or definition (e.g., “terrorism”), but at the end of the day, there’s little sense to killing thousands of innocent lives.

Although anger is still prevalent when we think of the lives lost that day, 9 years ago, we shouldn’t allow such anger to cloud rationality and adherence to the principles that make us Americans. The ridiculous assertions against a mosque and community center, built somewhere in the vicinity of the footprints of the World Trade center, suggests that somehow the Constitution could or should be suspended due to some people’s beliefs. Sorry, but the Constitution is the bedrock of our country.

You start trying to suggest there should be exceptions to its core values — such as freedom of speech, religion and the right to assembly — and you start to scare me.

I love America and feel privileged — every day that I wake up and am alive — to have been born into one of the world’s greatest countries during a time of great technological progress and advancement. But I am embarrassed by some of my fellow American’s assertions when it comes to issues such as this, because it suggests they are not students of their own country’s history, or appreciate its unique acceptance of all people of all religions.

Peace.

Dr. John Grohol is the CEO and founder of Psych Central. He is an author, researcher and expert in mental health online, and has been writing about online behavior, mental health and psychology issues -- as well as the intersection of technology and human behavior -- since 1992. Dr. Grohol sits on the editorial board of the journal Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking and is a founding board member and treasurer of the Society for Participatory Medicine.

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    Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 12 Sep 2010
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