[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 73 (Thursday, May 15, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E987-E988]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   SEPTEMBER 11TH COMMEMORATIVE COIN

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. STEVEN R. ROTHMAN

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 15, 2003

  Mr. ROTHMAN. Mr. Speaker, today, I would like to enter into the 
Record an article that appears in the April 29th issue of the 
Numismatic News entitled ``September 11 deserves commemoration on 
coin.'' This article was written by my friend, mayor of my hometown of 
Fair Lawn, and a Bergen County Freeholder in the State of New Jersey, 
David Ganz. I commend it to the attention of every Member of Congress.

               [From the Numismatic News, Apr. 29, 2003]

                Sept. 11 Deserves Commemoration on Coin

                           (By David L. Ganz)

       Liberty, Freedom, Justice, Intellect, Ingenuity, Challenge, 
     Capitalism, Success, Glory, Might, Power, America.
       The twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City 
     connoted all of these things--the very reason that the 
     building was a primary target for the extremists and 
     terrorists who murdered thousands of innocents Sept. 11, 
     2001.
       America has avenged the events of that day, when the towers 
     came under attack along with at least two other locations. 
     Without taking anything away from the victims on Flight 93, 
     or those who were at the Pentagon, the aim of Osama Bin Laden 
     and his terrorist crew was the rich symbolism of the World 
     Trade Center--what it stood for.
       In any generation, there may be one or two events that are 
     seminal, that define the generation. The bombing of the World 
     Trade Center, the Pentagon and the Flight 93 attack are 
     defining for the United States, for it marks the end of an 
     age of innocence and, perhaps, of a new era of American 
     military might.
       The war that we fought in Iraq, now moving toward a 
     complete cessation of hostilities, is a direct outgrowth of 
     the World Trade Center attack and the subsequent nearly 
     futile search for its progenitor, Osama Bin Laden.
       H.R. 298 was introduced by Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., Chair 
     of the House coinage subcommittee, on Jan. 8, ``To 
     posthumously award congressional gold medals to government 
     workers and others who responded to the attacks on the World 
     Trade Center and the Pentagon and perished and to people 
     aboard United Airlines Flight 93 who helped resist the 
     hijackers and caused the plane to crash, to require the 
     Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration of 
     the Spirit of America, recognizing the tragic events of 
     September 11, 2001, and for other purposes.'' Co-sponsor: 
     Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y.
       On Feb. 27 it was referred to King's Unit, the Subcommittee 
     on Domestic and International Monetary Policy, Trade, and 
     Technology. Nothing further has been heard from it.
       A little more than a year earlier, Rep. Steve Rothman, D-
     N.J., introduced H.R. 3980 to authorize commemoration of 
     ``Events of cataclysmic proportion, as well as epic 
     struggles, [which] have long been commemorated on the coinage 
     of various countries.''
       Congress has yet to take action on any measure, but it 
     should. It should be more than a national medal that honors 
     those who perished. It should celebrate the majesty of the 
     buildings where they once stood and of what they stood for: 
     above all, Liberty and Freedom, that which its enemies could 
     never destroy.
       There are those who believe--some congressional staff 
     members among them--that the events of Sept. 11 should not be 
     commemorated at all, and that we should forget America's 
     darkest hour. Commemoration, their view is, should be 
     reserved for triumphs, not tragedies.
       World history and the practices of other nations offers a 
     different perspective. Canada's tombac nickel, for example, 
     issued in 1943, featured a new reverse from the famous 
     Churchill ``V'' for victory over the Nazi Axis war machine. 
     It came at a dark moment of the war after battles had been 
     lost and when D-Day was more than a year away.
       It's more than me, alone, being a cheerleader. Coinstar, 
     who changed the way people dealt with cashing in coins, did a 
     survey last summer which concluded that ``more than half (52 
     percent) of Americans revealed they would prefer to see 
     scenes of the flag raising by firemen at the World Trade 
     Center/Ground Zero over the U.S. Military at Iwo Jima (37 
     percent).''
       More surprising: with younger Americans (18-34) popularity 
     is even stronger, at 63 percent. However, for Americans age 
     65 and over prefer the U.S. Military at Iwo Jima (50 percent) 
     over World Trade Center (32 percent). The poll, compiled from 
     telephone research among more than 1,000 randomly selected 
     American adults, was conducted by an independent market 
     research firm. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 
     percent.
       Private enterprise has stepped in where the Congress and 
     the Executive Branch fear to tread. Already, there are 
     colorized versions of the World Trade Center being placed on 
     silver Eagles as well as other coins. The U.S. Mint official 
     position: ``The United States Mint does not comment on coin-
     grading issues or on a colorized coin's current or future 
     value as a collectible item. If you like a colorized coin 
     because of the way it looks, then you may want to add it to 
     your collection. However, if you are primarily concerned 
     about the long-term investment value of a colorized coin, you 
     should contact a reputable coin dealer or coin grading 
     service before you purchase the coin.''
       What is it that is magical about the twin towers World 
     Trade Center, which at 110 stories tall each were an 
     arresting scene of American power and might in the skyscraper 
     silhouette of New York City's downtown?
       The World Trade Center had consisted of seven buildings, 
     one of which was briefly the tallest building on the planet 
     (the towers were not exactly the same height). The twin 
     towers were endless subject of New York skyline scenes that 
     appeared in newspapers, on medals and almost on the New York 
     state quarter.
       Designed by Minoru Yamasakui and Emery Roth, the twin 
     towers were part of a complex built in lower Manhattan island 
     that actually constituted the world's largest building 
     complex. Two rectangular twin towers were the most prominent 
     part.
       Each 110 stories tall (one also contained a television 
     antennae used by major networks, the building known as 1 WTC 
     was home to the elegant ``Windows on the World'' restaurant 
     and the antennae, while 2 WTC contained an observation deck 
     that offered an unparalleled view from more than a quarter of 
     a mile up in the air.
       One tower was 1,362 feet, the other 1,368 feet in height. 
     Both was completed in 1973 at a cost of more than $750 
     million and were owned by the Port Authority of New York and 
     New Jersey.
       Wrapped in stainless steel bodies lined with tall, narrow 
     windows, the skyscrapers were state-of-the-art buildings. The 
     Vista hotel complex, part of the center, was the host of 
     numerous New York International coin shows.
       Built on a 16-acre site, and going seven stories into the 
     ground (or more than 70 feet into Manhattan bedrock), the 
     twin towers dominated the New York skyline for more than 30 
     years. That 70-foot drilling was surrounded by a giant 
     bathrub-like structure that kept out the nearby Hudson River.
       In June 2002, just about nine months after the horrific 
     events of Sept. 11, I traveled into Manhattan to go to Ground 
     Zero. As mayor of my municipality (Fair Lawn, N.J.), I was 
     able to travel with the head of our Emergency Management 
     Office, Tom Metzler, and the other members of our Borough 
     Council.
       The ostensive reason was to see what terroristic damage 
     could occur, how it could be prevented and to help plan the 
     future. The other reason, more personal, was to stand in the 
     pit of Ground Zero, seven or eight stories beneath sea level, 
     and pay tribute to those who died that freedom might live.
       The nearest-height building was the Empire State Building 
     with 102 stories, located several times uptown to the north, 
     and then the Chrysler Building, at 67 stories.
       One view of the twin towers is depicted on a drawing 
     presented to the Fine Arts Commission as a possible final 
     design choice for

[[Page E988]]

     the New York quarter. Instead, a view featuring the Statute 
     of Liberty superimposed on a New York state map was selected.
       Relegated to a third place finish, the towers design shows 
     the Statue of Liberty in New York harbor, the twin towers 
     (including the aerial), misplaced bridges and a too-close 
     proximity of what appears to be a taller Empire state 
     building. The real twin towers always seemed larger than 
     life.
       My own memories of the twin towers are long, and varied. By 
     day, Windows on the World was a private restaurant known as 
     the Club at the World Trade Center. I was a member there for 
     about 25 years, joining right after law school. (In fact, 
     right after I was admitted to the bar across the river in 
     Brooklyn, I took my parents, wife and in-laws to a 
     celebratory luncheon at Windows).
       At Windows, Kevin Zraley was first the sommelier, and later 
     the Inhilco director of beverages corporate-wide. He taught a 
     fabulous wine course over a period of a dozen weeks, and I 
     took it. It gave me an appreciation of wine that has lasted a 
     lifetime.
       On becoming a club member, I had the privilege of buying 
     wine from them at Cellar cost, and storing it there. I went 
     mostly for older Bordeaux, and had some 1950 Haut Brion as 
     well as 1966 Chateau Gruaud Arose, and some Louis Jadot 
     burgundies--which were carefully stored in the basement of 
     the center.
       That came to a crashing end 10 years ago in 1993 when a car 
     bomb that tried to topple the edifice blew up, destroying 
     portions of the underground parking garage and causing $300 
     million in damages, not counting my wine.
       When I became president of the American Numismatic 
     Association, I sponsored a board dinner at Windows on the 
     World that allowed me to show off the restored cellar 
     following the explosion. The wine served that night came 
     exclusively from my private reserve, and as best I recall, 
     nine members of the board, their spouses or guests and the 
     professional staff went through three cases of wine, retail 
     value $2,500. (OK, they did buy the meals from their per 
     diem, but all of the wine was on me.)
       Through the years, Windows remained my favorite place to 
     take an overseas client; the food was excellent so long as 
     you stuck to simple dishes like a grilled prime steak or veal 
     chop, less successful with, say, a sauced dish like lobster 
     thermidor. Though never on the menu, except when I first 
     started going there around 1976, their fried zucchini sticks 
     were always available, served in a white cloth napkin 
     designed to gently blot the oil, but not the flavor.
       Just a year before Sept. 11, my wife, Kathy, and I took our 
     first cruise, going from Manhattan to Nova Scotia and back 
     again. We left on the Carnival Line (the Victory) and went 
     down the Hudson River towards the Verrazano Narrows bridge, 
     the Ocean, and the voyage. As we were piloted down, we passed 
     the magnificient structures and Kathy took postcard-like 
     photos showing not only the height of the buildings, but the 
     indelible place that they held in the New York skyline.
       It forms the basis for the proposed coin design photograph 
     that accompanies this article--which is done with the 
     assistance of a computerized program that gives the 
     appearance of a raised surface similar to that of a coin.
       The Sept. 11 destruction was incredible to watch--and 
     millions saw it happen on television. The rich numismatic 
     connection makes it a story likely to be remembered for years 
     to come. It should be a story that ends with a commemorative 
     coin being struck to honor the American dream that continues 
     to tower, even without those twin buildings.