Last year, Steve Sawzin of Lorain watched from his living room as the first, then second tower fell in New York. A highjacked plane went down in Pennsylvania, and another was crashed into the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., leaving a total of more than 6,000 people listed as dead or missing. The world is a much different place than it was only a year ago, said Sawzin, 81. He had watched as a 21-year-old Navy seamen from Pearl Harbor’s submarine base as Japanese bombers attacked Pearl Harbor. The attack killed 1,500 Americans and injured many others. “I was in shock when I saw the bombs exploding at Pearl, I couldn’t move because it was like I was in awe,” Sawzin explained. “On the television on Sept. 11, most people were running, but I think the people just standing around in shock — you know, that couldn’t move when the towers were hit — I think they were in that same sort of awe.” The feelings dredged up on Sept. 11 brought with it memories of himself watching a damaged Japanese bomber go down right in front of him into the bay, and Japanese bombers flying in “V” formation back to their carrier when their mission was complete. He was awakened by the bombs that morning, and he remembered forcing himself to remain awake for the next three days with a rifle. “We were given sentry duty, because we expected there to be a landing force,” said Sawzin. “None of that happened, but how could you sleep? I was afraid of an invasion.” The country has faced that same fear of impending danger for more than a year. America’s national monuments were placed under heavier guard. Changes to airport security and other public facilities were made. The Office of Homeland Security was created. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld told the nation in the following months that another attack was inevitable, but couldn’t answer when, where or how. Unlike the axis powers of World War II, al-Qaida forces have no nation of their own, and they bear no flag and wear no uniform, said Sawzin. “Like the president says, this is a new type of war,” said Sawzin. “We have to fight this war in small groups this time, and take out the enemy part by part. We don’t know where they all are, so that puts in everybody a big question mark. What will happen next?” President Bush and his administration now have their eyes set on ousting Iraqi president Saddam Hussein. Critics both home and abroad question the move, but supporters view it as a necessary preventative strike. “There was a good plan in the Gulf war,” said Sawzin. “We had pushed Hussein back then, then backed down. I think there’s something going on politically behind the scenes.” Sawzin remained remarkably relaxed when he spoke of the future of the war on terrorism. But after speaking about the love for his wife, Julia, and the importance of family, he pointed out the U.S. victory that followed Pearl Harbor’s attack and affirmed his belief that the peace will once again return to the U.S. someday. “All I know is the good Lord is doing things his way,” said Sawzin. “When the time is right, it’ll happen.” Others who remember events during World War II now use it to try to understand today’s situation with terrorism. Maggie Kahliff, 86, was a 25-year-old single mom in Fort Smith Arkansas when she heard the news of the attack on Pearl Harbor. “I had just had a baby, and we were in Arkansas driving down the road when I heard,” said Kahliff. Kahliff eventually would became an executive officer for the Export Import Bank of America during the ’70s and early ’80s which was housed in Tower One of the World Trade Center. Often times, while looking through the center’s Windows of the World,’ she would wonder what would happen should something happen to the buildings, but said the reality of seeing the remains of the towers turned to ashes and spread through Manhattan’s streets sent chills up her spine. “I remember thinking about that and what would happen plenty of times,” she said, quickly turning her attention to present day. “When I saw it happen, I didn’t believe it. I just kept thinking, it can’t really go like that.” Richard Sidwell, 82, was in his senior year at Purdue University during 1941 and was looking forward to joining the Navy. The U.S. Army got the 21-year-old student instead. “The Army got me when I was drafted. I served four years and 18 months of it was combat.” Sidwell said Generation X and the Greatest Generation share the feeling of tragedy of an attack on American soil, and the victory as well, despite the younger generation’s colorful music, colorful hair and colorful language. “To me it’s more of a question of maturity,” said Sidwell. “We were all young once, and we pushed the limits. Kids these days are more mature than I ever was at that age, so I have nothing but great respect for these boys.” Is the end in sight from where we stand united today? For Richard Sidwell, 82, Elyria, there is a speck of light in the far distance for the country that harbored them. “If you think about it, we still have a presence in just about every country we’ve ever fought with,” said Sidwell, naming South Korea, Japan and Germany. “In these countries we have integrations of corporations so I think it’ll happen in Afghanistan, but not for about 50 years.” John Graddish, 85, was 24 and working in the Lorain steel mills in 1941. He and his coworkers were in the process of changing shifts when he heard what happened at Pearl Harbor. “They said they bombed Pearl Harbor?” said Graddish. “I thought who’s that? What’s her name?” Graddish said the hatred of the al-Qiada terrorist network is ingrained early. “They teach their children to hate us from birth,” said Graddish, 85, of Elyria. “The whole point was to get us afraid, and they did.” But as report after report emerged suggesting that various branches of U.S intelligence knew something was going to happen, he said he can’t help but wonder why the pieces weren’t put together before Sept. 11. “I mean, we pay the FBI and the rest of them all of that money,” said Graddish. “But where were they? They weren’t doing their job.” President Bush said the nation is engaged in a different war than previous battles fought, and Nurenberg agrees. Janet Nurenberg, 81, Elyria, grew up in Brooklyn, but spent the last 50 years living in northern Ohio. “The circumstances are so different now,” Nurenberg said. “In World War II, we knew who the enemy was, but with this one, it could be anybody.” While some consider placing higher scrutiny on Arab-Americans, she said she remembers a move many Americans would rather forget: Japanese camps during World War II. “We apologize now, but that doesn’t give them back the land they lost,” she said. “It was a big mistake because you can’t judge a book by its cover.” She spoke of a Japanese boy who told her what happened after they were released from the camps. “People never regained their property after that, and some of them had been there since the 1800s building railroads. They were Americans,” she said. Paul Young, now 107 and confined to his bed, couldn’t be reached for comment this year. He said in an earlier interview that he was 46 when Pearl Harbor was attacked, and had just arrived in Cleveland from New York to take a position with the Cleveland school system. Young said he can’t remember where he was or what he was doing 61 years ago, but he remembers the feelings of tragedy, and he said the events on Sept. 11 brought back the same feelings. “I turned on the TV just when the plane hit the tower. I just kept thinking, all those people on that plane, gone. My God.” “You can get information quicker now. You know what’s going on the other side of the world when it’s going on,” said Young said. “When I was young, that kind of information would take two or three months.” “Hey, I’m old you know,” he said with a laugh. During the war, Young wrote articles on gardening for the Cleveland Press and helped with the city’s victory gardens, which were grown by the city’s residents to free up cargo space on trains to support the war effort.
