by Susan Ives, Alamo PC

I hope that by the time you read this, things will be clearer and our nation will be at peace. Until then, let me share some observations about the Internet in times of crisis.

The first thing I learned is that the Internet can let you down. I’m not much of a TV watcher and I spent the morning in blessed silence without even the radio to break my concentration. I was diligently writing a column about product safety sites on the Internet.

E-mail from a friend and a brief call from my husband alerted me that something, something terrible, had happened at the World Trade Center. Since I was online, I turned to the Internet for more information. Every site was stalled. It made no difference that I have a high-speed DSL line. When millions and millions of people are trying to access the New York Times, the Washington Post and even the Express-News Web sites, they bog down.

When I turned on the TV and learned what happened it became clear. First, the Internet is not yet robust enough to handle the massive traffic generated by a tragedy of these proportions. The problem was compounded because the epicenter of the destruction was in Manhattan, a telecommunications hub. Don’t dump your TV and radio or cancel your newspaper subscription yet.

The second thing I learned is that Murphy’s law is alive and kicking. Murphy, you will recall, observed that anything that can go wrong will go wrong. One of my “day jobs” is working for the peaceCENTER. We held a citywide prayer vigil on the evening of the attacks. Normally I would feature the vigil prominently on the peaceCENTER’s Web site. Not this time. Our very reliable Web host had selected this day to switch our files to a newer, faster, better server. On any other day, this would be great news. This day it was a disaster, as while the transfer was in progress the Web site was locked down and no changes could be made. They do this maybe once every other year and happened to pick the one day I needed to make an important change. 

This reminds me of when I was working in Washington as an army plans officer. One of my jobs was to develop and maintain contingency plans in case a president died. I was working on the notification plan to invite people to a state funeral, and had covered all of the bases: telegram, phone, mail, diplomatic pouch, personal visits. . . you name it, it was on my list and I knew how to do it. My colonel was never satisfied. “Give me more,” he said, and I reached down deep and came up with more ways to communicate. I had phone numbers to bike messengers and was on a first name basis with the stationer who had engraved the invitations to the Kennedy funeral. “More. More.” My well finally ran dry, so I cut out all of the ads from the back of the Washingtonian Magazine for singing telegrams, including the guy in the gorilla suit. Maybe that’s why I’m not in the army any more. 

In the Internet, the guy in the gorilla suit is e-mail. When all else fails, he’ll come knocking on your door and deliver the message. I sent out a release to about 15 people. Within the hour, it had reached hundreds, and was coming back at me. E-mail came through. The Web stalled, phone lines were tied up, fax lines were permanently engaged, but even busy reporters were gleaning the news with one eye on their in-boxes.

The Internet, I keep reminding myself, can be a force for good or a force for evil. That is in our hands. It heartened me, that on this day of unspeakable tragedy, my in-box was filled with somber words of love and encouragement and not with angry words of hate and retribution. From the Dallas Peace Center I received a prayer, from a mediator in New Hampshire some guidance on how to discuss these chilling events with children. I received notification of more than 70 other prayer vigils being held all over our city. 

Nonviolence and forgiveness do not come easy for me. I was a soldier in northern Iraq during the Gulf War and have looked at unbearable evil in the eyes of both its perpetrators and its victims. Two of my friends and co-workers, John Moss and Peggy Holland, were killed in the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building. John and I both have friends who work in the Pentagon, and today we do not know if they live or died. The dark side of me lusts after revenge. The side turned to the light realizes that violence will only breed more violence. This must never, never, never happen again. The violence must stop. It must!

Forgive me for being so personal but today of all days I can not write of anything else. My soul is heavy with grieving and these fingers cannot type frivolous words. 

My New Testament says, in the Gospel of Matthew, 24:6, “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed.” Matthew must have had some foreknowledge of the Internet, because I am sure that the Internet, and all of the other mass media, will be spreading rumors of war. Take his advice, and see to it you are not alarmed. Peace is possible and it is in our hands.

Susan Ives is a past president of Alamo PC and on the staff of the peaceCENTER.