|
|
Article: The Uses of Adversity.(for influencing public opinion after the World Trade Center and Pentagon Attacks)(Brief Article)(Column)(Poem)
- Article from:
- The Nation
- Article date:
- October 8, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 The Nation Company L.P. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
Sweet are the uses of adversity,
Which, like the toad, ugly and venomous,
Wears yet a precious jewel in his head;
And this our life, exempt from public haunt,
Finds tongues in trees, books in the running
brooks, Sermons in stones, and good in everything.
--As You Like It, II. i. 12
On the ground in downtown Manhattan, I see the best of our collective selves. Firemen and rescue workers risking their lives to save others; anonymous individuals pitching in to help strangers. Nobody whines about their losses, the inconvenience or even the inevitable screw-ups. It's a city I never knew existed. I go for walks and come back all choked up.
But then I get ...