The Todd Beamer Protocol
By Blizzard Actual
Out of every one hundred men, ten shouldn’t even be there, eighty are just targets, nine are the real fighters, and we are lucky to have them, for they make the battle. Ah, but the one, one is a warrior, and he will bring the others back.”
-Greek Philosopher Heraclitus 535-475BC
| RAMBO, John J. | And what do you think I am? |
| Col. TRAUTMAN | A full-blooded combat soldier. |
| RAMBO, John J. | Not anymore. I don’t want it. |
| Col. TRAUTMAN | That’s too bad, ’cause you’re stuck with it. Let me tell you a story,John. There was a sculptor, and he found this stone: a special stone.He dragged it home and he worked on it for months, until he finally
finished. When he was ready, he showed it to his friends and they said he had created a great statue, and the sculptor said he hadn’t created anything. The statue was always there. He just cleared away the small pieces. We didn’t make you this fighting machine. We just chipped away the rough edges. nnn |
-RAMBO III
“Keep remaining sitting. We have a bomb on board.” – Ziad Samir Jarrah
Forget, “Let’s Roll.” It was Jarrah’s statement that changed Todd Beamer’s life forever.
By now you had better know the story of Flight 93. If you don’t, just leave and don’t come back until you do. Also, if you are one of those people that think 9/11 was an inside job by the Jews because jet fuel can’t melt steel beams, don’t ever come back.
I fly a fair amount, and I’ve sat next to dozens of Todd Beamers. Former Athlete, database software rep, church softball league MVP. I bet his dresser was full of white socks. Until that morning when he descended down Gate 17, Terminal A of Newark Airport, Beamer was just the guy you had to squeeze past when you wanted to use the airplane bathroom.
You know what happened after that. I won’t type what happened because after 14 years, I can’t even think about it without crying. I think it was beautiful what Todd and the others did. I suspect you do as well. What I can’t stop thinking about is why did he and about 10 other people do what they did?
Pay attention; this mathematical portion, while rough, is important. The official manifest that day lists 44 souls (including the 4 hijackers) on board flight 93. Depending on configuration, a 757-222 had seating capacity for a little less than 250 people. Roughly speaking, the plane was about 20% full. Subtract the crew, which had been murdered, and the four hijackers, and you sit at 38 scared civilians huddled in the back of the plane. From 40ish passengers came 10ish impromptu warriors. Now consider that there may have been several children, elderly, and disabled people who weren’t up for the fight. 10ish is a hell of a lot of people that when faced with certain death went down fighting. That is the Todd Beamer Protocol.
A few days ago, three childhood friends touring Europe along with two Frenchies and a Brit executed the Todd Beamer Protocol on an Amsterdam to Paris train. During that ride, a terrorist, whose motives are clear but affiliations yet uncertain, burst from a lavatory armed with an AK47, pistol, and cutting implement. After an initial confrontation with two French passengers (one of whom he promptly shot in the neck) Ayoub El-Khazzani got the ol’ Rhonda Rousey treatment from the three Americans. Then, as only a classy Brit could do, Christopher Norman jumped into the fray in hog-tied Khazzani with his silk tie.
But seriously, these Americans, they are kids. None of them can grow a respectable beard; all of them have baby fat and acne. They “bro-ishly” showed up to the recognition ceremony wearing polo shirts. And they are beautiful. Also, they are now French Knights (slightly jealous). I have seen nothing in the last 8 years as powerful as this counter-attack led by these three that reminds me that the Todd Beamer Protocol is still alive and (literally) kicking ass. It’s a refreshing reminder that while our leaders may not believe in American Exceptionalism, Americans still do.
Not since Sherman M4s rumbled down the Champs-Elysees and our grandfathers discovered Quartier Pigalle have Americans received such a warm welcome in France. In awarding the Legion d’Honneur to 4 of the 6 individuals who decided to “roll” that day, France sends a clear message that meritorious conduct still matters. I might also add that in this same move, France outclassed the US terribly. Recall OUR last noble gesture was to send James Taylor to France to play a song that should have been on the Toy Story 1 soundtrack…
Every one of us has a hero inside, yearning to show up for a righteous fight no matter the odds. Todd Beamer taught us this. These 6 brave souls on a Paris bound train reminded us of it. Don’t you forget it.