notebook
Greg Bruno
Gerald Fisher was an "eternal optimist". Captain Charles "Chic" Burlingame III was described as a "go-to guy". And Lt Gen Timothy Maude was one of the US army's most important men.
All three were killed when American Airlines Flight 77 slashed through the Pentagon 10 years ago on Sunday.
I never met any of them. But their deaths define my September 11.
Americans struggle to make sense of those attacks. We know where we were, what we were doing, who we were with. But a decade later we still can't process the "why" of what we saw, or understand the anger in which the United States responded.
So when Americans fail to come up with answers that satisfy or pacify, we settle instead on memories. And it is the victims whose stories I know best.
A year before the towers fell, I'd taken a job with The New York Times in the Washington DC bureau. During that year, I had helped cover the bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen, the contested presidential election of 2000 and the monotony of America's policy machine.
But at 8.46am on September 11, while visiting a friend in New Jersey, I began to understand why journalism mattered. This is no trite statement. That day showed how journalism helps to explain the world in real time - the decisions, the triumphs and the tragedies.
By the time the second plane hit the World Trade Center I was in my car driving south. When I checked in by phone with my editors in the Times Square offices, they sent me to the capital. Roadblocks in New York were going up, tunnels were closing and lower Manhattan was becoming a war zone. Panic was setting in.
The Washington newsroom was controlled and working, but the buzz was frenetic, chaotic, even apocalyptic. Friends in New York were wondering about family and colleagues but among seasoned reporters at 1627 I Street, the questions were far graver.
"Where was the president?" I remember someone asking. "Has he returned to Washington? Are there more planes inbound? Is Congress next? Who is running the country?"
I called my family.
The third attack hit at 9.37am. After ducking low over the Potomac River, Flight 77 took a path into the Pentagon, steered by a hijacker who had forced the pilot, Capt Burlingame, from the cockpit. And as Ground Zero smouldered and New Yorkers leapt to their deaths, as powerful men hid in bunkers, America's vulnerability was laid bare.
Over 180 people were dead by the time I reached the Pentagon, among them Capt Burlingame, Gerald Fisher, a consultant working with the military, and Gen Timothy Maude, the US army's deputy chief of staff for personnel.
In the immediate aftermath, press was kept at a distance, well beyond the ring of fire engines, ambulances and stretchers that pulled people from the rubble. But I didn't need to be any closer. None of us did.
In the days that followed we searched for answers; I did so by trying to give a voice to some of the victims. Portraits of Grief, one of the Times post-September 11 projects that was eventually awarded a Pulitzer Prize, aimed to tell the story of every man, women and child who died that day.
The names of three men landed on my desk.
In my career since, I have done my share of door-stopping relatives, sitting for hours with friends of soldiers killed in Iraq, or a family grieving a young man's death in Afghanistan. But the calls I made to friends and family of Mr Fisher, Capt Burlingame and Gen Maude have stayed with me.
Mr Fisher "was a very open kind of guy, an eternal optimist", one of his colleagues said. Capt Burlingame, a former classmate said, "was kind of a go-to guy. If you needed something done and done right, you would call on 'Chic'". The army had needed Gen Maude, a friend recalled. "They wanted his sage wisdom.''
Years after I left the Times, I returned to Washington and paid a visit to the Pentagon's America's Heroes Memorial, a small room in the building's outer ring. I stopped at the book of biographies and flipped to the Bs. A photo of American Airlines Capt Burlingame smiled back, big white teeth filling the frame.
I hadn't known that Chic was married to a flight attendant, that he had played trumpet in his high school marching band or that he had been a navy jet fighter pilot.
I didn't know him, but I have never forgotten him.
gbruno@thenational.ae
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Ain Issa camp:
- Established in 2016
- Houses 13,309 people, 2,092 families, 62 per cent children
- Of the adult population, 49 per cent men, 51 per cent women (not including foreigners annexe)
- Most from Deir Ezzor and Raqqa
- 950 foreigners linked to ISIS and their families
- NGO Blumont runs camp management for the UN
- One of the nine official (UN recognised) camps in the region
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
Scoreline
Man Utd 2 Pogba 27', Martial 49'
Everton 1 Sigurdsson 77'
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Cultural fiesta
What: The Al Burda Festival
When: November 14 (from 10am)
Where: Warehouse421, Abu Dhabi
The Al Burda Festival is a celebration of Islamic art and culture, featuring talks, performances and exhibitions. Organised by the Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development, this one-day event opens with a session on the future of Islamic art. With this in mind, it is followed by a number of workshops and “masterclass” sessions in everything from calligraphy and typography to geometry and the origins of Islamic design. There will also be discussions on subjects including ‘Who is the Audience for Islamic Art?’ and ‘New Markets for Islamic Design.’ A live performance from Kuwaiti guitarist Yousif Yaseen should be one of the highlights of the day.
The Saga Continues
Wu-Tang Clan
(36 Chambers / Entertainment One)
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ALL THE RESULTS
Bantamweight
Siyovush Gulmomdov (TJK) bt Rey Nacionales (PHI) by decision.
Lightweight
Alexandru Chitoran (ROU) bt Hussein Fakhir Abed (SYR) by submission.
Catch 74kg
Omar Hussein (JOR) bt Tohir Zhuraev (TJK) by decision.
Strawweight (Female)
Seo Ye-dam (KOR) bt Weronika Zygmunt (POL) by decision.
Featherweight
Kaan Ofli (TUR) bt Walid Laidi (ALG) by TKO.
Lightweight
Abdulla Al Bousheiri (KUW) bt Leandro Martins (BRA) by TKO.
Welterweight
Ahmad Labban (LEB) bt Sofiane Benchohra (ALG) by TKO.
Bantamweight
Jaures Dea (CAM) v Nawras Abzakh (JOR) no contest.
Lightweight
Mohammed Yahya (UAE) bt Glen Ranillo (PHI) by TKO round 1.
Lightweight
Alan Omer (GER) bt Aidan Aguilera (AUS) by TKO round 1.
Welterweight
Mounir Lazzez (TUN) bt Sasha Palatkinov (HKG) by TKO round 1.
Featherweight title bout
Romando Dy (PHI) v Lee Do-gyeom (KOR) by KO round 1.
Ponti
Sharlene Teo, Pan Macmillan
The five types of long-term residential visas
Obed Suhail of ServiceMarket, an online home services marketplace, outlines the five types of long-term residential visas:
Investors:
A 10-year residency visa can be obtained by investors who invest Dh10 million, out of which 60 per cent should not be in real estate. It can be a public investment through a deposit or in a business. Those who invest Dh5 million or more in property are eligible for a five-year residency visa. The invested amount should be completely owned by the investors, not loaned, and retained for at least three years.
Entrepreneurs:
A five-year multiple entry visa is available to entrepreneurs with a previous project worth Dh0.5m or those with the approval of an accredited business incubator in the UAE.
Specialists
Expats with specialised talents, including doctors, specialists, scientists, inventors, and creative individuals working in the field of culture and art are eligible for a 10-year visa, given that they have a valid employment contract in one of these fields in the country.
Outstanding students:
A five-year visa will be granted to outstanding students who have a grade of 95 per cent or higher in a secondary school, or those who graduate with a GPA of 3.75 from a university.
Retirees:
Expats who are at least 55 years old can obtain a five-year retirement visa if they invest Dh2m in property, have savings of Dh1m or more, or have a monthly income of at least Dh20,000.
Dhadak
Director: Shashank Khaitan
Starring: Janhvi Kapoor, Ishaan Khattar, Ashutosh Rana
Stars: 3
UAE rugby in numbers
5 - Year sponsorship deal between Hesco and Jebel Ali Dragons
700 - Dubai Hurricanes had more than 700 playing members last season between their mini and youth, men's and women's teams
Dh600,000 - Dubai Exiles' budget for pitch and court hire next season, for their rugby, netball and cricket teams
Dh1.8m - Dubai Hurricanes' overall budget for next season
Dh2.8m - Dubai Exiles’ overall budget for next season
Specs
Engine: 2-litre
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 255hp
Torque: 273Nm
Price: Dh240,000
The biog
Name: Fareed Lafta
Age: 40
From: Baghdad, Iraq
Mission: Promote world peace
Favourite poet: Al Mutanabbi
Role models: His parents
