Amanda of Pandagon has a blistering post on the "greatest generation" vs. today's warbloggers. Today's the 1,346th day since 9/11. It took 1,346 days since Pearl Harbor to declare victory in World War II. The critique is strong:

The Greatest Generation knew that a war effort this massive would require effort from everyone and with that end in mind, they intergrated women into the military for the first time with the WAC and while black Americans were still serving in segregated units, the contributions of both blacks and women during WWII set the stage for rebellions that came later and society progressed. The Cowardly Generation thinks the best way to win a war is to exclude gays and women from military duty as much as you can while rolling back social reforms at home.

The Greatest Generation rationed sugar, coffee, fabrics and mostly oil for the war effort. The Cowardly Generation decided that the best way to show support was to purchase massive SUVs that looked manly while increasing our dependence on the oil that got us into this shit to begin with.

This is something I've thought about a lot myself, as I still can't shake the sensation of biking down an empty 5th Avenue towards a massive column of smoke 1,346 days ago. I was a little afraid, yes, but mostly I was sick to my stomache because I knew that at full population there are 50,000 people in those towers and I figured most of them must be dead.

At the same time, as this was a meltdown of the status quo I felt a thrilling sense of possibility. I think I started singing "We Can Be Heroes." It seems a little inappropriate in hindsight, but the words were electrifying. Experience is a product of contrasts, and there's nothing like the towering visage of death taking over the city you call home to make you feel alive.

I think my greatest beef with Bush and his cohort is how they squandered that opportunity. That was a moment in which the United States could have taken an enormous step forward and taken most of the world with us, I think. That was a moment when our society was aching to come together as never before. People were giving blood because no one knew what the fuck else to do, and in that moment the President told us to keep shopping and keep praying. And then he started getting ready to scare us into an unnecessary and poorly planned war.

I don't know if that window of optimisim is closed or not. I don't want to believe it, but the depth of divisions and rancor in this country today are staggering. If a potential for real change swept in along with the grim reaper that clear tuesday morning, I fear it has been spent to take us to war and turn us against ourselves. 1,346 days. What a motherfucker.