11th Aug 2002
Can We Please Stop Calling It “9/11″?
As the anniversary of that dreadful day grows close (which I’m not looking forward to; I found myself weeping the other night at a tribute to the heroic passengers of Flight 93 on a rebroadcast of the damn ESPY Awards), I want to point out something that has been really annoying me for many months now: the use of the phrase “nine-eleven” or, even worse, “nine-one-one.” What’s up with that?
This is not a normal way to talk about a date. My birth date is June 11. When someone asks my birth date, I don’t say “six eleven” much less “six one-one.” That would sound retarded.
What it is, is shorthand. In this post-MTV culture of ours, we waited only a matter of weeks or even days before we gave this horrific event a media nickname, a handle, jargon.
Why is this necessary? It’s quicker and easier to say? “Nine eleven” is two syllables shorter than “September eleven.” We’re all in that big of a hurry?
Or is “nine eleven” catchier than “September eleven?” Yes, I think it is. “September eleven” or “September eleventh” has a somber sound to it. It’s unavoidable to feel a bit of the agony of that day in those words. But “nine eleven” sounds lighter. It’s a bit further removed from the recollection of the actual day itself; it’s more of a “meme” for bigger “thing” that date represents. It’s got a bit of marketing buzz to it. It sounds almost hip, or fun. And yes, it’s a weird coincidence that the date numerically is the same as the telephone number for emergency services, but that was worth observing once, as a nod to numerology freaks, but it’s hardly worth remembering every time we mention the event. It’s like saying “dubya dubya two” or “‘Nam” — it just sounds hoaky and insincere.
I don’t know if it’s just my imagination or inflated sense of self-importance, but it seems to me that New Yorkers use the cute handle “9-11″ less often than friends and commentators I hear from other parts of the country.
More than annoying, I find it offensive. September 11th was something profoundly sobering, and we shouldn’t lose sight of that. It deserves much better than a cutsie nickname.
No tags for this post
Leave a Reply