Colonel Rob Martinez
On its tenth anniversary, stories of families grieving, and stories of a war that is heavily debated still decked the headlines across the country. But what has been reflected in the press is that people seem to have forgotten what happened on that fateful day. Lucky for us, there are people like Colonel Rob Martinez to remind us what 9/11 did. He would know, because he was there.
Martinez felt guilty as he sat in a seminar room with fellow students being groomed to become the next great American leader. He felt guilty because he had just been informed that a plane had crashed into the Pentagon—the building that happened to be located across the street from the Top Level School he was in at the time. He felt guilty that he had served the country for 20 years and couldn’t do a thing to stop what was happening at that moment. He felt guilty about not predicting something like this could ever happen to his country full of freedom, and democracy, and systems of checks and balances. Martinez felt guilty. And then, he was enraged.
Martinez is a modern day patriot. He finds it his “civic duty” to give back to his country, and he says this in the least clichéd way possible. Martinez has spent his life serving his country in the Marine Corps, fighting wars in multiple countries, and helping spread democracy to as many places as possible. Martinez has a modern day appreciation for his country that isn’t found in the average American citizen. Like many people that day, he simply could not understand how this could be happening.
Martinez wanted to protect his kin, and it didn’t only extend to his immediate family. After finding out about the attacks, Martinez wanted to contribute anything he could to helping his fellow Marine brothers evacuate the Pentagon, which at that point was billowing with thick black smoke. After everyone was brought to safety, Martinez stood and watched as the sabotaged region of the Pentagon continued to go up in flames.
“This is something out of a Hollywood movie,” he thought to himself.
Apprehension, confusion, and panic filled Washington D.C. that day and never quite left. As Martinez drove to his home that night, the streets of the capital city, which had once been bustling with tourists, young professionals, and government officials, were now eerily empty. The state without even knowing it had turned into a police guarded, fear induced community. Martinez saw our freedom start to slowly slip away.
“What has happened to our country?” He asked himself.
Everyone was watching each other. People on the streets darted glances at one another, watching for the next attack. Motorcades carrying the “important people” sped through roads, trying to deliver our nation’s leaders safely to their next destination. The U.S. was scared, and Martinez made it his duty to help make America feel safer.
The press can alter how we feel about topics and decide how we know and feel about what the government is doing to fix the country’s problems. When it comes to 9/11, Martinez thinks that the mainstream media often times reflects the event correctly, focusing on how it has hurt and altered people’s lives. But there are those select few in the press who seem to put a spin on 9/11.
“I recently was sent a video blog about how 9/11 was enacted by the CIA and the government to start a war,” Martinez says. “But a sane person with an average IQ can look at the facts and know the truth.”
When it comes to the war, Martinez thinks the media may be losing their touch. They often forget why the public is there in the first place.
“We aren’t doing this for our own altruistic reasons,” Martinez says. “We are doing this to protect our own borders and democracy in the world.”
Martinez was taught to stand up when the national anthem played. He has benefited from everything this country has to offer, and he believes in this country and those who are lucky enough to live here. His love for America is so potent that he can barely hold back when describing it. Martinez saw 9/11. He inhaled the smoky haze that filled people with hatred. Martinez could have abandoned his country. But instead, Martinez held his head high and entered into the unknown and damaged America that he is still fighting to make better today.