This was September 11, 2001 for my family. My sister died two months prior and my dad was active military. Living on the west coast, the attack was very early for us and I’m not sure what got my mom to wake me up but she did and in a very weird way I’m thankful for it. I rather have known what happened than hear it afterwards. Being a child, it was a very surreal day. I thought I understood death and its magnitude after my sister died but I couldn’t comprehend this kind of scale.
I know we make light of it the event on the internet (I’m totally guilty of that too)… However I’ve been seeing videos of personal recounts of people there in the moment and it’s made me check myself. My families life changed fundamentally but it pales in comparison to so many others.
There’s a certain account that animates personal stories (that I believe are largely NY/east coast based) called Story Corps. Every single post has made me cry.
For all those whose lives were changed through this tragedy, I’m so sorry.
Yes. He had 6 to 9 month deployments from 2001 until about 2007. The most I got to talk to him was about once a month in a phone call. When he was home it was for about 2-3 months at a time. It was really hard on our family but we had a great support group.
My friends father was also deployed quite a bit after 9/11. I know it was hard on her too. I feel for all the military families that were missing their family members 🫂
This is the truth. Things can be two things and we should care for all humanity but also a little bit more for our own people's, however they choose to define that individually.
I am proud of my service.
I am glad that I joined, did my time, deployed twice (got stoplosted😆🤬).
Sadam was a maniac. Seriously terrifying.
He was our fault/responsibility?
But...
We messed those people up and cause so much instability it is an order of magnitude more than anything the US has suffered stateside since Indian Removal. War is hell, its what countries do, but that was all our fault and it was based on fake reports that came directly from the administration.
This will come back to bite us. I love my country, but I'd hate the US too in there shoes; even if I hated my own leaders. There's enough hate to go around. That whole thing was a disaster, let me tell ya, its hard to give words to a father carrying his dead 8 year old who got shot by random Johny Soldier day 1 with an itchy finger, terror, and no discipline. He demands justice, you have no idea who drove down that street... Here is a ticket to take to central, just mark "family member" on the damage form.
Sewage, garbage, rubble, outright violence and gang/tribe sectors. Guilty as #$*. If this were China invading the US, you better be sure that every redneck to gangbanger would be lighting their asses up every chance we got.
Worlds crazy... humans been doing it forever, gross. Conflicts are constant, it sucks. um, go team USA? 🤔🤷
As someone that was 19 when 9/11 happened, and the only reason I didn’t join the military is because I’m stubborn and know I don’t follow orders well, thank you for your service.
I’m happy you made it back, and I’m sorry for any friends you may have lost along the way.
My husband was with 3/1 as well. We lived in the little trailer park base housing and I will never forget convoys pulling up along the main roads in front of housing and putting up concertina wire. All ATMs, stores, everything closed down until they were certain there were no threats to the military bases. It was scary.
Kinda wild to think I was from the very beginning and was there almost at the very end.
Our generation's Vietnam. My entire living memory is of knowing that somewhere, Aussie Diggers were operating overseas with US troops, to protect us from something I only have the vaguest memories of.
I remember seeing it on TV when I was 4, and my parents in a state of utter shock. I can't imagine what i would've been like to be standing to, wondering when the next attack would arrive.
I never joined the Defence Force, but I've got plenty of mates who did, some of whom worked with the US. Did you ever cross paths with any Australian Defence Force personnel?
Nice! My mates always had positive things to say about US troops, too. I think one of them worked with some Green Berets once. They were crazy good, but also crazy, apparently xD
I don't know how you or anybody you served with can stay positive about the military after the last couple decades. I would be so fucking mad at the government for literally everything they do and how casually they throw lives away. You go from a bullshit war started over lies and misinformation so they can get oil money, and the destruction and death caused by that invasion Sparks the wave of hatred that leads to this attack, which then triggers another invasion that ends up accomplishing pretty much fuck all other than getting people killed, especially considering that the country which was largely responsible for the attack (SA) got away with it Scott free and is still an active trading partner with the government because they have...... Oil and money
I have a question for you since you were super involved in the middle east. (Skip to the bottom with the brackets if you don't wanna read much).
I am beginning a project to make an animated Series called "Caliber" made to really focus in on the aspects of war in the middle east (because I feel like we're hella forgetting all the fucked things the US soldiers alone had to go through), taking place in 2025 in a world where the 2021 pullout was fake, and soldiers were still fighting, but just unknown to the public (a tribute to my grandfather, who fought in Korea in 1956 and in Lebanon in 1957, but was undocumented and forced to keep quiet most of his years, making so much of his time there unknown for me), there is more but I dont want traceable things online to tell any of the other major plot points, because I have the whole thing pretty well planned out.
I plan to make this series go really in depth on the aspects of the US soldiers, their struggles as they're constantly put in danger, their jokes as they've been on "high alert" for a long ass drive and got bored, their longing for home and plenty of other things. I also would like to interview refugees who lived in the area, sympathizers, anyone I can talk to on the matter.
[SKIP TO HERE]
That being said, could I learn some of the stories you have that you lived through during the war? Not particularly all the popular things movies showed like Hurt Locker, American Sniper, Lone Survivor, 12 Strong, and all those other movies, but actual stories that can show the human behind them, the ones that hold the passion and feelings that were there. Not just a story that glorifies the US Marine Corp, but a story that shows their lives. It could even been the lighthearted things, the funny moments, the deep conversations, just the feeling when you manage to go home for a bit.
Any story that you could share would be perfect, because they'd all be true.
The way I'm writing it is, while the 2021 pullout still technically happened there were around 1000-2000 US marines that were still around, and still actively fighting, just probably a lot more considering the forces got SEVERALLY cut apart. They'd be mainly fighting for some corrupt unknown profit that the government has, although they wouldn't know what. Probably getting very few orders from the mainland (As in the US), and just, go around finding trouble spots, looking for noteable people, maybe trying to crumble terrorist regimes from inside, or cause them to split and fight amongst each other. They'd basically be a bunch of marines off a leash and have no clue what to do. Making the military force more separate from the Mainland's military. The only thing connecting the two would be Ammo and gun shipments, food, and the occasional replenishment of soldiers.
If you'd like we could go over to DMs so we could talk more in depth!
The US was just attacked. Your default reaction is similar to if it was a nuclear strike. And you're too busy mobilizing to really know what is going on.
I'm imagining that scene from Independence Day when Area 51 has to scramble right before and during they get attacked and everyone is just running around (not trying to make light of it, just saying how chaotic it must have been, I guess).
I was on a submarine in the Pacific ocean when it happened. We tried to rush to the Persian Gulf but we were diverted to Guam to load Tomahawks instead.
Ended up surveiling the coast of Africa near Mogadishu for about a month.
He was in the Air Force based out of Reno Nevada. He stationed in Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran. He’s been retired for a while now but I can ask him.
Edit: my dad wasn’t in Iran. I misspoke. He previously was stationed in Qatar. I fucked up on this and I’m sorry for any confusion. It’s been a long time but that’s not an excuse to not have my facts right.
My dad was in the Air Force during that time as well, stationed in Oman though. He worked on repairs before and after war damage, specifically C-130s. Doubt they would’ve crossed paths, but who knows!
My father eventually got medically discharged and was 100% disabled veteran status until he passed away June 17, 2025 from service-related illness.
This answered my burning question of did he ever get to come home and stay home. Panel 6 made me scared the end was going to be a coffin with the flag draped over it.
As a fellow daddy's girl, hold him tight and tell him you love him when you can. Have the conversations you keep putting off. I lost my dad earlier this year after a long health battle (not cancer for those wondering); I'm absolutely wrecked most days, and I was fully prepared for that day to come.
As an Air Force vet as well from the GWOT era. I highly recommend just sitting and talking with him. Put your phone on voicemail memo and ask him about his service. Basic training, tech school. First duty station, 9/11, everything. His funnies stories and best memories. Even his worst memories.
My mom never talked to my grandfather who was a Korean War vet about his time in uniform, and we don’t know much about his service. I think he’d also be happy to share.
Very, very few Americans died in the GWOT compared to previous wars like Vietnam. In context more American military personnel died by cancers, heart problems, and other “natural causes” during those twenty years than died in combat.
I know in comparison that America lost far fewer soldiers when compared to previous conflicts, but I also know that Dot is not one to shy away from using her comics as a form of therapy to get a traumatic/high stress out of her head entirely to share the emotions she feels in an effort to come to terms with whatever event. Such as when previous pet passed away.
Theres a non zero chance my parents may have met your dad. I was born a few months after 9/11 on that base but i think they'd be living there for a few years at that point. Crazy to think about
If my memory serves me right, one of the Truckee cops was stationed at the base in Reno went he rotated from active to reserves for a bit. I could be mistaken and he was just at Beale the entire time until he transferred over to the Navy, but it would have been mid-2000s to early 2010s.
Glad he made it back in one piece.
I was also a teen when this happened, left for boot camp the next year and did multiple deployments to the area.
I can’t fathom how hard that must have been for him after losing a child. Trauma stacked on top of trauma.
Never miss an opportunity to let him know how happy you are to still have him here. And if he hasn’t already, encourage him to try therapy. The generation ahead of me in service tended to stigmatize mental health services… but was seriously screws with your head. Some things didn’t hit me till over a decade later when my life had slowed down a bit and I had time to myself to think and process everything that happened.
Non zero chance our dads met in Qatar or Iraq. Dad was pretty high up in the enlisted side of the SF (MP) world out of McChord AFB. Was gone a lot during the immediate aftermath as well.
God, I can’t imagine. I was in kindergarten at the time but was fortunate enough to have both parents at home. Thank you for sharing your story. Hope you and your loved ones have had more peace and time in the years since. ❤️
I was in California and my father was a fighter pilot and we were on red alert status. Dad left but before he told my mom "do not take them to school"
He did laps on the west coast corridor in an F-18 protecting anything major for like 15 hours straight.
Weirdest thing is that I was my mother's alarm clock and would wake up and check out some morning cartoons for like 30 minutes, but answered the phone from a Navy wife friend and had to wake my mother up and watched the second plane hit together. Surreal day.
My mom was a us marshal. She had to go for like two months to this (now declassified) secret mountain base and was told to sit on the perimeter and if anyone came to shoot no questions.
My dad had a traveling job as a trainer and that time was so rough bc he had no idea what the hell to do with me and my younger brothers (we were 9, 2, and 1). Thankfully we happened to live in Texas when it happened and the moms in the neighborhood did a meal train for us.
What I remember most was only being able to talk to my mom 5 minutes a week and she couldn’t tell us where she was or what she was doing.
I had a similar experience. I lived on Camp Pendleton on 9/11. Aside from watching him go to work, I don’t think I fully understood what being a Marine meant.
My dad deployed soon after. When he was seriously injured by an IED, it made it even more real. When he was healed enough, he deployed again, and again, and again until he retired in 2007.
I joined in 2004 to get some type of “revenge” for my dad. How naive I was. All of my male cousins joined. All but one of us is still in or serving in some capacity. Dozens of deployments between us.
I don’t know what my life would be like without 9/11. That moment set a trajectory for my family that none of us would have predicted.
If he was in Cali he was most likely a Marine. If he was still stateside he probably didn't deploy until OIF (13th MEU was the primary responder for Marines and they were already deployed).
I was a LCpl in CA in the field when this happened.
To add another perspective, my dad was also active duty military. At the time, he was based in the Pacific, so he wasn't where he would be deployed. My parents had long been divorced, so it didn't impact my life much. He actually chose to get reassigned for deployment. He ended up doing two tours in Iraq I think, but as an officer, he spent most of his time in an air conditioned office with his own desk.
After leaving the military, he joined a PMC that trained the new Afghan security forces, and I know he made absolute BANK doing that. Enough that he was able to invest and now owns 12 homes as a landlord, besides his own legit mansion (not McMansion).
None of that PMC money was ever reported for purposes of child support. Mom and us kids grew up poor. Here's hoping I get anything in the will and he doesn't just leave everything to his wife, who then leaves it to her side of the family.
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u/reddot_comic Finessed Impropriety 15h ago edited 14h ago
This was September 11, 2001 for my family. My sister died two months prior and my dad was active military. Living on the west coast, the attack was very early for us and I’m not sure what got my mom to wake me up but she did and in a very weird way I’m thankful for it. I rather have known what happened than hear it afterwards. Being a child, it was a very surreal day. I thought I understood death and its magnitude after my sister died but I couldn’t comprehend this kind of scale.
I know we make light of it the event on the internet (I’m totally guilty of that too)… However I’ve been seeing videos of personal recounts of people there in the moment and it’s made me check myself. My families life changed fundamentally but it pales in comparison to so many others.
There’s a certain account that animates personal stories (that I believe are largely NY/east coast based) called Story Corps. Every single post has made me cry.
For all those whose lives were changed through this tragedy, I’m so sorry.