"United 93": You have to see it!

I don't know if it's the real picture of United 93, but I agree that the movie is a Gripping, Sensitive Portrayal of Terror Victims' Brave Final Act and of the heroism of Todd Beamer, Jeremy Glick the other passangers who stormed the cockpit and forced the plane down and prevented it from hitting the U.S. Capitol. I also agree with the reviewer in the Washington Post: "United 93" is a great movie, and I hated every minute of it.

Tod Beamer's father had a very moving piece in the WSJ in which he pointed out that:

There are those who question the timing of this project and the painful memories it evokes. Clearly, the film portrays the reality of the attack on our homeland and its terrible consequences. Often we attend movies to escape reality and fantasize a bit. In this case and at this time, it is appropriate to get a dose of reality about this war and the real enemy we face. It is not too soon for this story to be told, seen and heard. But it is too soon for us to become complacent. It is too soon for us to think of this war in only national terms. We need to be mindful that this enemy, who made those holes in our landscape and caused the deaths of some 3,000 of our fellow free people, has a vision to personally kill or convert each and every one of us. This film reminds us that this war is personal. This enemy is on a fanatical mission to take away our lives and liberty--the liberty that has been secured for us by those whose names are on those walls in Battery Park and so many other walls and stones throughout this nation. This enemy seeks to take away the free will that our Creator has endowed in us. Patrick Henry got it right some 231 years ago. Living without liberty is not living at all.

But at the same time he recalls the heroism and the death of his son as a way of justifying the war against Iraq and the Bush Administration's Wilsonian project in the Middle East:

This film further reminds us of the nature of the enemy we face. An enemy who will stop at nothing to achieve world domination and force a life devoid of freedom upon all. Their methods are inhumane and their targets are the innocent and unsuspecting. We call this conflict the "War on Terror." This film is a wake-up call. And although we abhor terrorism as a tactic, we are at war with a real enemy and it is personal.
There are those who would hope to escape the pain of war. Can't we just live and let live and pretend every thing is OK? Let's discuss, negotiate, reason together. The film accurately shows an enemy who will stop at nothing in a quest for control. This enemy does not seek our resources, our land or our materials, but rather to alter our very way of life.
I encourage my fellow Americans and free people everywhere to see "United 93."
Be reminded of our very real enemy. Be inspired by a true story of heroic actions taken by ordinary people with victorious consequences. Be thankful for each precious day of life with a loved one and make the most of it. Resolve to take the right action in the situations of life, whatever they may be. Resolve to give thanks and support to those men, women, leaders and commanders who to this day (1,687 days since Sept. 11, 2001) continue the counterattacks on our enemy and in so doing keep us safe and our freedoms intact.
May the taste of freedom for people of the Middle East hasten victory. The enemy we face does not have the word "surrender" in their dictionary. We must not have the word "retreat" in ours. We surely want our troops home as soon as possible. That said, they cannot come home in retreat. They must come home victoriously. Pray for them.(more.)

I join his prayers, but I'm sorry that he is politicizing "United 93" (the director didn't). But since he's done that, let me just add the following. From my own perspective what I will always remember are the words of one of the passengers: “No one is going to help us. We’ve got to do it ourselves. American patriorism -- I'm not talking here about American nationalism -- is not driven by the government but by the American people, like those we see in this movie. If anything, 9/11 is one of the most dramatic example in history of a failure by the government to protect its own citizens, like those we see in this movie.