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They carried flags, “thank you signs,” and lit candles. They came from all races, ranks and religions to walk, remember and celebrate what it means to be an American and prayed for America’s future on the White Plains Candlelight Walk Sunday night
Police estimated a crowd approaching 8,000 persons gathered at the White Plains Railroad Station and marched shoulder to shoulder, Black to White, Hispanic to Hassidim, Italian to Jew, Arab-to-Asian, Old-and-Young, American-to-American in a solemn, uplifting remembrance and rededication to America’s future.

Candlelight March on Main

The White Plains Candlelight Walk staggered city officials with the streaming turnout filling the broad Main Street boulevard with ranks of 30 to 40 persons shoulder-to-shoulder all the way from the City Hall steps to Bank Street.

By 7:15 PM the parking lot below the clock tower at the railroad station was filled, and still they came. Every race, every creed. Neighbors greeting each other. Shaking hands. Some carried signs. Some carried flags. Some brought their own candles, but they came. They walked. Pushed strollers. Children did not cry or misbehave. Persons said “Excuse me,” and smiled at each other. They knew this was important.

WHITE PLAINS REMEMBERS:Crowds milling at White Plains Railroad Station at twilight, awaiting start of Sunday evening’s Candlelight Walk to Remember the victims of the Trade Center catastrophe. WPCNR PHOTO

A disciplined group

They lit each others’ candles. At 7:35 PM they began to walk slowly south on Bank Street filling the broad cross street with quiet, orderly, confident humanity. For such a large crowd, they were serious and stalwart.

Some carried signs reading “Thank You White Plains Bravest and Finest,” and “Thank you Fire and Police.” They sang impromptu versions of “My Country ‘Tis of Thee,” and “The Star-Spangled Banner,” waving their flags. Their spirits were steady. Their pride high. No fear. Their love of country and fellow Americans was glowing.

The city stops for a remembrance

As dusk stole velvetly over the streets with an orange sun receding to the West, traffic on Hamilton Avenue stopped for this long freight train of White Plains citizens. They took 30 minutes to reach City Hall, and still, from this reporter’s vantage, reached back to Bank Street.

There was no honking of horns from stopped autombiles. No animosity. Motorists recognized something special: thousands of tentative, yet determined steps of America on the way back were being taken.

The City Clergy in a remarkable ceremony

At the City Hall steps, with Main Street jammed with humanity, a quiet, respectful crowd drew close to the old neo-classic columned brick façade. They waved flags, their candles in their hands glowed like they do at a Meadowlands concert.

MAYOR DELFINO OVERWHELMED: The Mayor stands shoulder-to-shoulder with Councilpersons, city clergy, choir, and dignataries, saying “God will get us through,” at the conclusion of the historic and moving White Plains Candlelight Walk on the steps of old City Hall. WPCNR PHOTO

Mayor Joseph Delfino welcomed the multitudes thanking all for coming, thanking the White Plains firemen and policemen for their efforts the past week, but his remarks were hard to hear. Somehow you did not have to hear them. Everyone understood what he was saying. Everyone felt it, too. I did.

The Mayor was surrounded by a host of the White Plains clergy from many churches behind him. The men and women of the cloth had assembled at his call to present an ecumenical service of remembrance and prayer for the victims of the World Trade Center disaster. There was a chorale group and ensemble. But, I cannot tell you who they are at this point.

The message you heard even if you could not hear it

There were no news releases or media briefs at this gathering. No text of the Mayor’s remarks was handed out. He did not make many. It was not that kind of event. It was regretfully special. You did not need to know who was offering the prayers, rabbi or priest, minister or pastor.

The different prayers and appropriate hymns rose on the cool early autumn night echoing skyward, warming hearts, and somehow fit splendidly meaningfully together. The White Plains clergy, in this reporter’s opinion, should do this more often under pleasanter circumstances. It was very special and so right.

The impromptu public address system could not be heard clearly beyond 100 feet. However, the people of White Plains listened and soaked in the spirit of the sweetly sung entreaties to The Almighty, with no catcalls, no disrespect, dedication and silent endorsement of the message. Children did not cry.

A moving sequence

The most moving sequence of the service occurred when each Man and Woman of God voiced a prayerful sentiment and the ensemble sang “Lord, listen to your children preying.” It was a White Plains “Moment to Remember.”

The service concluded with the throng singing “We Shall Overcome.” After several moving choruses with the multitude of citizens swaying together, the final stanza which goes “We Shall Stand Together,” closed the old 60s protest song with a roll of applause and cheers.

The Mayor rallies the crowd

Mayor Delfino came to the podium. With clergy, councilpersons, and congresspersons to his right and left, spoke proudly and earnestly to the crowd:

“Never would I have believed that we’d have such a turnout. I am overwhelmed, this is truly the greatest community in America,” and went on to thank all the city’s clergy for coming together for the service, saying that “God would get us through.”

The Mayor said that there was a Remembrance Book in the City Hall rotunda, which would be placed in the White Plains Public Library for all to sign. The Mayor announced this because not all of the thousands could march into the rotunda to sign it that evening, which brought one of the few laughs of the night.

Everyone leaves with a sense of a job to be done

The remarkable evening of remembrance and renewal closed with a rousing singing of “God Bless America,” with outstanding voices from the steps of City Hall, helping the citizens out with the second and third verses.

The crowd slowly dispersed.

They returned to cars, parents pushing strollers, couples arms over shoulders. Old city and county political rivals often adversaries, shook hands on the City Hall steps.

Some young persons in their 20s stood in front of the fenced off E J Conroy Drive, and, impromptu, shouted “USA,USA!” Then they changed what they were chanting. They crossed their hearts and began to recite, in unison: “The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag,” getting every word right with dignity and dedication.

You should have been there.

The American people trusted our government to protect us, and in the last 8 years our leaders let us down big time. I’m sorry, “The Thing” Tuesday should not have been a surprise.
Tell me, Mr. and Mrs. America, and Mr. and Mrs. White Plains didn’t you think exactly like I did the last 8 years, that our government was looking out for our welfare? Always.

Didn’t we trust them to always have our best interest in mind in dealing with foreign policy, enemies, etc. We spend billions on the FBI, the CIA, the INS, the DEA, the ATAF, the NSA. You name it there was an agency that was out there looking out for us, Mr. and Mrs. America, protecting us against the Haitian boat people, the Mexican illegal aliens, the Branch Davidians, the Aryan Nation. Real threats there.

Weren’t we told all efforts were being made? Didn’t you and I think that?I mean, I don’t have time to check the quotes after the USS Cole torpedoing, the Ethiopian embassy blast, and I’m probably forgetting some catastrophic incidents, as well.

So when the Ethiopian embassy was blasted, we thought well, (at least this reporter did), that we’ll probably be getting a handle on this bin Laden guy real quick. We trusted our FBI, CIA, the National Security Agency, would quite rightly get on his case. We trusted them.

Well, they didn’t.

Why didn’t they?

I am blame-pointing, and not being fair. I am not being forgiving. Because I am outraged that “The Thing” that happened Tuesday was a complete surprise. This is too incredulous to be believed that it was a surprise. Couldn’t we have a little suspicion once in awhile? Were our top law enforcement and security agencies hands tied? And, if so, by whom?

Just today, we find that with a lot of effort the FBI has turned up over at least 100 suspects in this plot. In four days. You think, perhaps if they had actually infiltrated these little cells in the last eight years that maybe they might have gotten a little inkling of the September 11 plot?

We know. It’s very hard to infiltrate because these folks are from the middle east. Rubbish. It’s your job to infiltrate. It’s your job.It’s your job to sniff it out. The last plot against the World Trade Center was sniffed out back in ’92-93. And they stopped it. And we did not do anything since? That is unacceptable. There is no excuse.

I have in a joking manner referred to the Clinton Administration as the worst presidency in American history, due to Mr. Clinton’s behavior. But not until this week did we know how really incompetent the administration really was. How utterly incompetent.

There is a heap of anger out there.

I fault the management of our intelligence gathering the last eight years. Because that is the question here. How can you round up a 152 people who might have done this in 4 days and not have any inkling this plot was in the air?Are you kidding me?

What do you make that the reason we are not retaliating right away is those geniuses at the CIA are working the phones to the Mossad, saying, “Hey, you know anything about these guys?” I hope not.

I hate to say it, but Clinton not only disgraced the Presidency. He appears to have grossly mismanaged American intelligence on his watch. Or, the persons who ran it for him did. Here’s why:

Not to have infiltrated Bin Laden’s gang effectively after the Ethiopian embassy bombing and the USS Cole bombing is a major negligence. Is anyone suspicious at the FBI and CIA anymore? Do not forget the FBI and the CIA, could not even find those two moles, who were outing their agents in Russia for years. How about a little skepticism? Another thing, they were too busy sniffing out real threats to the country like the Branch Davidians. Of course, the FBI and CIA are going to be blamed. Police and fire officials always know no matter how they handle anything the political forces will use them as scapegoats. Sometimes they are to blame.

But, there appears to this suspicious mind, more to this than just bungling. More evidence to throw in the hopper: Could the FBI, CIA, have been consciously prevented by the Clinton Administration as a matter of policy from extensively infiltrating Middle East terror organizations? Because Clinton had this “pipe dream” of going out as being the President who arranged a Middle East lasting peace, could the FBI and CIA have had their hands tied, because the feckless, clueless Clintonistas did not want to irritate the wonderful Mr. Arafat? Because they did not want covert operations against bin Laden, Quaddafi and Hussein, poisening the atmosphere on the negotiations? Remember how Clinton, the darling of the media, was portrayed as such a diplomat? He was so concerned about his legacy?

We reporter-types have a lot of respect for law enforcement guys. We believe they are doing their job to their best, 24/7. But they have to be allowed to do it. And they have to be given solid, responsible direction. I do not think this is the FBI’s fault. Could they have done a better job? The last four days of swift detentions and shocking revelations tells me they could have if they were allowed to. For some reason they did not. Why?

You can just hear the Clinton braintrust talking to the FBI now back in 1996 can’t you? “Look if we really go after this guy, well it’s going to prevent us from creating an atmosphere for peace…dadadada daddada”

No one will write these things because they are unseemly and unthinkable. Well, I am. Too bad.

In the months ahead, members of congress will be asking these kind of questions in the biggest congressional investigation you have ever seen. They are honest questions that need to be answered. I think you’re going to see a lot of old familiar Clinton Administration regulars quizzed on camera in the next two years if we get to that point. Harsh, unfair, partisan? Yes, all of those. But the 5,000 dead persons from Tuesday deserve them to be answered.

Tuesday you saw the result of 8 years of alleged intentionally curtailed intelligence operations for what can only be political reasons. A megolomaniac President’s ego perhaps?

As an aside, to see former President Clinton appearing in public Friday comforting people on camera before President Bush arrived in New York Friday, was a disgraceful faux pas. He was the President — “The Boss” when the FBI, CIA, and the usual agencies should have been getting hard information on these Barbary Pirates. Clinton told one tearful woman looking for her husband when asked if he could help, “I am not the President.” This is perhaps a good thing, and completely in character. Mr. Clinton always passed the buck to someone else.

It strains reason to believe the FBI can finger over 150 people in four days and not have been prevented for some preposterous political reason from conducting the undercover work needed to sniff out any plots they might have been hatching.

This epic outrage has ended for all time the credibility of our usual talking heads: Yasir Arafat’s PLO is through for good. (That’s why he was crying on camera Tuesday. He was crying because he is through. And anyone negotiating with this organization again is on dream street.)
Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson were caught on video tape on a television show saying God is angry at us because we as a nation support abortion, homesexuality, etc. Poppycock. Saying those things have discredited him and Robison as a credible political force, as much as “The Thing” Tuesday has ended the hopes of the Palestinians for a thousand years. How stupid and self-serving of Mr. Falwell and Mr. Robertson to say that.

Last but not least are the “journalists” of today to whom investigative reporting is a lost art. To whom the tough question is anathema to ask. To whom investigative journalism consists of telling why things happened, not telling what is going to happen. Years of talking about Monica instead of our terrorist stance? Come on.

One writer actually dreamed up this kind of debacle in the fifth rate men’s magazine, Maxim, conjuring up just this kind of scenario, only his villains were bin Laden and the Columbian drug cartels, not the Middle Eastern terrorists. If he could dream it up, why couldn’t our security agencies? To read that chilling article go to the Maxim Magazine website and do a search on “Terrorists.” The article appeared in August, 2000.

WPCNR