Moving on after lessons from the past

By Somdatta Sengupta

As the years go by September 11 remains a day for reflection and prayer.

The day has changed our lives in many ways. It has reminded us how fragile this world is, especially now. It reminds me how interconnected we all are as people.

What I admire about new populations coming to this country and to Monmouth County is the industry and the entrepreneurship that follows.

Whether it is new immigrants or new citizens, these new Americans truly embrace the American Dream in spirit and practice.

Coming from India, the concept of globalization is a natural instinct. India is not just a country or culture by itself. Like America, the country is shaped by interacting cultures and people that have visited and left their legacy behind.

For example, everyone is very familiar with Indian food, especially Tandoori chicken. But this dish is not even Indian in origin. It is a legacy left behind by the Moghuls, who in turn were influenced by the Persian culture.

Today this dish is as Indian as the Taj Mahal and has become a symbolic representation of the globalization of economies and cultures. Where it involves McDonald's in India, the fare is 'Indianized' for local taste though the flavor is still very American.

The age of globalization is an age of opportunity. Like India and the United States, people across this planet are becoming increasing mobile, increasingly aware of each other and increasingly connected.

The new ethos of this inter-connected world, with its interconnected economies, is prosperity through commerce and competition.

In many ways, the creation and history of the United States mirrors this new world order. This country was founded upon entrepreneurial spirit. It was a big part of the American Revolution and remained a vital key to understanding this country afterward.

Over the last few years, the American spirit of commerce has become a global phenomenon. New economies have embraced the American tradition of Main Street commerce. At the same time, Main Street America has experimented with global sensibilities in the business world. With each new Chinese buffet or dry cleaning shop that sprang up in the neighborhood, the
American Dream got re-invented and reinforced.

Change is already in our midst. What we are experiencing at present is the rise of a "new" America. We are witnessing a new chapter in the history of this country and we are all part of that creative process.

This year we get to pick the next president of the United States. The choice before us, in my opinion, is between energy and enthusiasm as embodied by Barack Obama and experience as represented by John McCain. Whoever is elected, the task before the new White House team is to make a conscious effort to encourage those policies that will encourage business growth and commerce not only around the world, but also along Main Street in Belford.

Commerce, both local and global, is the new language that binds Americans to the new interconnected world. It is always going to be the medium through which Americans live, move and learn.

Sept. 11 and the rise of a new American consciousness

By Somdatta Sengupta

It was a Tuesday morning in New Jersey when my mom called me from India. She had just witnessed the second plane crash into the Twin Towers on BBC World News and was frantic to know where I was.

I was not yet up, having been on a night shift covering news the night before. I had to report at my desk at 11 a.m. and it was hardly past 9 a.m. when mom called seven years ago.

Living through the memory of the rest of that day still amazes me. Sirens, emergency alerts over radio and TV clips form an amazing kaleidoscope of confusion and alarm.

Within minutes I was down at the Jersey Shore, fighting crowds of people scurrying to watch a sky of black fumes rising across the stretch of water that separates the Jersey Shore from Manhattan. The otherwise clear view of the Verrazano Bridge and the island of New York City beyond, was a grey blur. It was like watching a science fiction movie where the world as we know it ends. Only this was happening in real time, seven years ago.

Today as another September 11 dawns in India, I closed the chapter on yet another September 11 issue of The Courier, the newspaper I edit in New Jersey. What was different this year?

Apart from the usual sadness that comes from reflecting on the event, it’s the slow realization of what has changed in America, for Americans and for the rest of the world connected to this country.

Seven years ago, people in the areas I covered barely knew where Iraq or Afghanistan is. Today every other house in the neighborhood has a son or daughter serving in either country, fighting America’s war on terror.

Before September 11, people in New Jersey were more aware of what’s going on in Wall Street and the latest show on Broadway than what was going on either side of the Atlantic or the Pacific.

The rest of the world was too remote and irrelevant. Gas was still affordable and jobs were secure. It was safe to be in America.

But when terror hit home, distance faded and the reality of globalization dawned. Keeping the country safe wasn’t a job for spies or secret agents anymore. Homeland security became a national issue. Every morning people developed a habit of checking what code of alert it was before they left home. It became automatic, like checking the weather. An age of innocence in the history of this country ended.

Throughout the past few years, as I covered news in the affluent coastal communities of New Jersey, I saw anger melt into frustration. Then it mellowed into sadness and now reflection.

Over the years, I have seen more and more Americans realize and accept their part on a smaller, more fragile planet. They are aware now more than ever before, how the balance of power, the dependence on global resources and the consequences of political decisions taken between nations, impact them and the world around them.

Their immediate geographic reference has been stretched from Canada and Mexico to the Middle East and Russia. Things have changed and I have witnessed Americans, both immigrants and citizens alike, adjust their scope of reference to the changing times.

The new American consciousness is one of shared responsibility for the new world order. The urge to take the lead is an innate American sensibility but today that is tempered with an effort to cooperate with others.

As the rattle and hum of rebuilding continues at Ground Zero the foundation of a new American landmark is being laid in concrete. It will be a permanent reminder of how America has changed.