Mark Wahlberg thinks quite highly of himself, to put it lightly. He’s one of today’s biggest earning action stars, and The Fighter actor seems to think that his quick moves and choreographed fighting scenes holds weight in the real world.

In an interview with Men’s Journal, actor and on screen bad ass Mark Wahlberg talked in length about 9/11 and the heroism he could have achieved if given the chance. Recalling that if he didn’t take a flight to Toronto a week before the attacks he would have been on the plane from Boston that hit the towers.

“If I was on that plane with my kids, it wouldn’t have went down like it did,” Mark Wahlberg tells the magazine. “There would have been a lot of blood in that first-class cabin and then me saying, ‘OK, we’re going to land somewhere safely, don’t worry.”

This isn’t the only time Wahlberg has brought up the alternate reality that could have been had he boarded that Boston flight.

“We certainly would have tried to do something to fight,” he said in 2006. “I’ve had probably over 50 dreams about it.”

So on a scale from 1-10 how insensitive do you think his comments are?

Mark Wahlberg Claims He Could Have Stopped 9/11 From Happening is a post from: The Inquisitr

Sarah McKinley, a teenage mother in Oklahoma, shot and killed an intruder on New Year’s Eve in order to protect her three-month-old baby.

ABC reports that when McKinley heard two men trying to break into her house she grabbed a pistol, a 12-gauge shotgun, her three-month-old child, and called 911.

McKinley asked the dispatcher:

“I’ve got two guns in my hand — is it okay to shoot him if he comes in this door? I’m here by myself with my infant baby, can I please get a dispatcher out here immediately?”

The dispatcher, who was on the phone with McKinley for 21-minutes, said that she couldn’t advise McKinley to shoot the intruder but did say that she had to protect her child.

When the two intruders entered the house, one charged at McKinley with a hunting knife. McKinley fired and killed the intruder. The other man fled the scene.

McKinley said:

“I wouldn’t have done it, but it was my son… It’s not an easy decision to make, but it was either going to be him or my son. And it wasn’t going to be my son. There’s nothing more dangerous than a woman with a child.”

Det. Dan Huff of the Blanchard police said that the killing was justified and that McKinley would not face charges.

Huff said:

“You’re allowed to shoot an unauthorized person that is in your home. The law provides you the remedy, and sanctions the use of deadly force.”

According to ABC, McKinley was at home alone on New Year’s Eve because her husband had died of cancer a week earlier on Christmas Day.

Do you think Sarah McKinley’s use of deadly force was justified? Is there anything more dangerous than a woman trying to protect her child?

Teen Mom Shoots Intruder, Says ‘Nothing More Dangerous Than a Woman With a Child’ is a post from: The Inquisitr

45-year-old Mary Ellen Lisee made an emergency call from a Travelers Inn in Fort Pierce, Florida, prompting a St. Lucie County Sheriff’s deputy to show up and find Lisee drunk, yelling, and jumping up and down.

As police arrived and were shown to Lisee’s room by hotel staff, a man who identified himself as her boyfriend was in the process of leaving, saying it was too noisy and that he needed to get some sleep. When officers asked Lisee to write a statement, she wrote:

“My name is Mary Ellen Lisee. I have beaten, I believe in God, and He forgives me. I may joke, but I do not do crack. I will not for as long as I live.”

It was while police interviewed Lisee at the hotel that she made her bizarre eating confession, matter-of-factly stating to officers that she ‘ate too much food’. She declined medical attention before being arrested.

While uncommon, Misuse and Abuse of 911 is a crime that carries prison sentences and stiff fines in Florida.

Woman Eats too Much, Calls 911 is a post from: The Inquisitr

If your iPhone is not working you go to the Apple store. They have a genius bar there who can help you. You do not dial 911 because that makes you really an idiot.

One idiot of such magnitude is Michael Alan Skopec from Kendall County, Illinois. He called 911 five times to report that his iPhone was not working.

In the first call, Skopec asked the dispatcher why his phone was not working. He was referred to call the phone manufacturer instead.

In his second call, Skopec showed his frustration with his phone problem and was even cursing.

He called 911 three more times, after which the police were called to arrest him. He was charged with obstructing or resisting a police officer which is considered a misdemeanor.

So, if you have an iPhone probelm, who do you call?

Man calls 911 for iPhone Repair is a post from: The Inquisitr

A Massachusetts couple were forced to call 911 after they entered a corn maze just before sunset and were unable to exit the maze before darkness fell.

The couple entered the maze at Connors Farm just north of Boston with their infant and when the farm shut down and bugs descended the parents decided to call 911.

During the dispatch conversation the mom said:

“I’m stuck at Connors Farm. I’m really scared. It’s really dark and we’ve got a 3-week-old,” while adding, ”I don’t know what made us do this. Oh, my goodness. The mosquitoes are eating us alive, and I never took my daughter out, this is the first time. Never again. This is embarrassing.”

Her husband then chimed in by telling the dispatcher:

“I can see lights over there, but we can’t get there. We’re smack in the middle of the corn field.”

Thankfully the family was found quickly and removed from the 8-10 acres maze.

It should be noted that Connor Farms urges people to enter the maze no later than one hour before closing time and they explain that passing through the corn maze typically takes 45 minutes.

The design firm who created the maze for the farm says it’s the first time they have heard of police needing to rescue someone from inside a corn maze.

Personally I would find a night time corn maze to be far more fun than a daytime maze, then again I would be wearing insect repellent and wouldn’t have a 3-month-old child with me. Would you prefer a daytime or nighttime corn maze challenge?

Couple Call 911 After Getting Stuck In Corn Maze is a post from: The Inquisitr

Ten years later, 2,977 dead, and this is the quintessential picture that says a thousand words.

[9/11] In Memoriam is a post from: The Inquisitr

The events that unfolded ten years ago undoubtedly changed the lives of people in the United States. Its effects echoed globally and soon everyone became used to living with the threat of terror. The phrase “if you see something, say something” became the golden rule.

Within the context of this new environment, The Harris Poll surveyed 2,073 adults to look back at what happened ten years ago. The survey, conducted by Harris Interactive also focused on safety, possible terror attacks, and security after 9/11.

One-third of Americans (32%) say they are more concerned for their personal safety now than they were before September 11, 2001; one in ten (9%) are less concerned; and three in five (60%) say their level of concern is about the same. Looking back to November 2001, right after the attacks, more than two in five Americans (42%) said they were more concerned about their personal safety; just 1% said they are less concerned; and about three in five (57%) said their level of concern over their personal safety was about the same as it was before the attacks.

Hatred towards the “American way” was one reason for the attacks and ten years later, seven in ten U.S. adults (71%) believe there is more hatred towards the U.S. around the world compared to what there was before 9/11 while just one in ten (11%) say their is less hatred today. It could be for this reason that large majorities of Americans believe the U.S. will experience another attack in the next decade.

The survey respondents gave credit to the FBI (81%), the CIA (79%), former President George W. Bush (55%), and President Barack Obama (48%) for helping reduce terrorism within the U.S.

Almost everyone (95%) says they remember where they were when they heard about the events on September 11th for the first time. The events that day totally changed the lives of millions of people especially those that were left behind to look back, year after year, and continue living under the threat of terror as if it’s just another “normal day.”

Where were you on September 11, 2001?

(Photo by Dominic Rivera: 2,753 chairs in Bryant Park, New York in remembrance of the 2,753 lives lost as a result of the 9/11/01 World Trade Center attack, facing the site where the twin towers once stood.)

The 9/11 Harris Poll: Are We Safe Now? is a post from: The Inquisitr

In an interview on yesterday’s Colbert Report, NBC News veteran Tom Brokaw recalled his experiences on 9/11, a day that, as he puts it in the interview, forever changed America.

His day started off, oddly enough, in a Yoga class, in which he was coaxed into by his wife. He remarked that he didn’t want to be there, but he never imagined he’d be able to get out of it as a result of a major, life-changing tragedy.

Most of us have difficulties recalling the events from that day, but Brokaw considers revisiting the events as “instructive”. Recalling the day from his perspective allows him to reflect on everything from that tragic day.

After hearing the news and rushing to the NBC studios in New York, he called up his wife, who was in Montana at the time, and said: “We’re at war and I don’t know when we’re gonna be able to talk, you better get up and start watching this.”

He recalled, “”When I play the tape back in my mind, there was a real surreal quality about it. It seemed to unfold in a kind of slow-mo way because we didn’t know what was gonna happen next. When you go to war or when Hurricane Irene is coming ashore, you have a little warning. In this case, it completely stunned all of us.”

“It took me everything I knew not just as a journalist but as a husband and as a father and as a citizen to get through that day.”

via Huffington Post

Tom Brokaw recounts events of 9/11 on Colbert Report is a post from: The Inquisitr

Vice President Joe Biden confirmed today that U.S. officials were looking into a credible terror threat. Biden said that the source of the threat was credible but that it was not certain that an attack had been planned.

ABC reports that information obtained by CIA over the last 48 hours shows that three men may have entered the United States with the intent of launching a vehicle-bomb attack.

Here’s a video of Joe Biden talking about the terror threat on “Good Morning America.”

Biden said that officials have been running over every lead as we approach the 10th anniversary of 9/11.

Biden said:

“We recovered documents from the Bin Laden compound that said he was interested in an attack on 9/11 so we’ve been very focused on this. There were specifics (to this terror threat) so in that sense its credible. But there’s no certitude, we don’t have the smoking gun.”

ABC reports that a bulletin was sent out by the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security to law enforcement agencies across the country warning about a terrorist attack on 9/11.

Security officials believe that three people entered the country after mid-August with the intent of avenging Osama Bin Laden’s death. The three people have not been identified, but authorities are currently combing through a list of suspects.

New York police commissioner Ray Kelley said that he was deploying extra bomb-sniffing dogs and radiation detection equipment beginning Friday morning. Kelly also said that his officers would be performing random vehicle checks and that illegally parked cars would be immediately towed.

The terror threat did not specifically target New York.

Biden Says Terror Threat is Credible But Not Confirmed [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Ten skydivers will jump on 9/11/11 at 10:00am ET from an airplane over Ground Zero to fly 10 giant US flags and honor the courage of those who lost their lives during the attacks 10 years ago.

The skydivers are members of the Fastrax Professional Skydiving Team based on Middletown, Ohio. Since its formation in 2001, they have performed in almost 1,000 exhibition skydives as far as Moscow and Normandy. The team has also jumped over balloon festivals, air shows, NASCAR, Indy Car, symphony performances, golf courses, amusement parks, mall parking lots, tennis courts, Red Bull Air Races and Veteran support events.

This jump will obviously be a memorable one for the team. Citing the importance of the upcoming skydive, Fastrax skydiver and spokesman David Hart said:

“The tribute also honors the service men and women who have and still are fighting to protect and preserve our freedom. Some of the jumpers will carry special mementos from 9/11 survivors on the skydive. Team Fastrax paid a very similar tribute on 9/11/08 and jumped with seven U.S. flags over Ground Zero, but this jump includes the largest flag, which is 7,800 square feet.”

Here is the video of the team’s skydive in 2008 to commemorate the 7th anniversary of 9/11:

Skydivers to Fly Largest US Flag Over New York’s Ground Zero on 9/11/11 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Nearly everyone thinks about the Twin Towers when they recall the morning of 9/11. But 40 other Americans died that day on United Flight 93, when the passengers and crew members fought back against the terrorists and stopped another tragic attack.

This weekend is the 10th anniversary of 9/11 and people around the country will be holding memorial services. On Saturday, the first phase of a national memorial will be dedicated to the 40 passengers and crew that lost their lives when Flight 93 crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, on September 11th, 2001.

Terry Shaffer, chief of the Shanksville Volunteer Fire Department, said:

“We had a hazmat scene with jet fuel and human remains and the bits and pieces of the plane scattered about… The smell of jet fuel and human remains is not something you ever forget.”

According to News 24, both George W. Bush and Bill Clinton will be attend the event. President Obama is scheduled to head to Shanksville on Sunday, when wreaths will be placed around the crash site.

The story of United 93 has been made into two television dramas and a Hollywood movie. Still, it doesn’t seem like the story gets the attention that it deserves.

When the terrorists took control of the plane, the passengers had to think fast. They had to gather information, formulate a plan, vote on a plan, and then act. CBS reports that United 93 was heading toward Washington D.C., but thanks to the brave men and women on Flight 93, the terrorists were forced to crash the plane early into rural Shanksville.

Are you planning anything special for the 10th anniversary of 9/11?

A Look at Flight 93 Ten Years Later is a post from: The Inquisitr

What will you do to commemorate 9/11? The “I Will” campaign has thrown out the question and people from around the country, including a few celebrities, have answered. Lady Gaga, Naz, Drake Bell, and DJ Pauly D have all filmed short videos for the 9/11 remembrance campaign, talking about what they remember from that tragic day and what they will do 10 years after to commemorate the deadliest terrorist attack on US soil.

The “I Will” campaign was put together by the volunteer network, HandsOn, and the nonprofit 9/11 memorial foundation, MyGoodDeed, for the September 11 National Day of Service and Remembrance. The “I Will” campaign asks Ten years later, what will you do to remember?

Here’s a promo for the “I Will” campaign.

Viacom will be airing the PSAs over the next few days before the 10th anniversary of 9/11. Viacom is also asking citizens to upload their own tributes.

Philippe Dauman, president and CEO of Viacom, said in a statement:

“Everyone was affected by the tragic events of September 11, which claimed the lives of so many family members, friends and colleagues. A decade later, we hope that our audiences and the entire Viacom family will pause to reflect on the profound impact of that day. We are proud to join this call to action and encourage everyone to make a personal tribute.”

You can see the “I Will” videos here or post your own videos on the 9/11 Day facebook page. You can also contribute to MyGoodDeed by buying a t-shirt or by volunteering on 9/11. 

The  9/11 Tribute Movement is hoping to reach 1 million tribute videos by the 10th anniversary of 9/11. What will you do to remember 9/11? Will you upload a video?

Lady Gaga Films 9/11 Tribute for the ‘I Will’ Campaign is a post from: The Inquisitr

For many on the East Coast, Hurricane Irene blew through and did very little damage save for fallen branches and intermittent loss of power.

Others experienced extensive flooding and many areas remain in the dark due to storm damage. Hurricane Irene was an interesting exercise in the impact of storms on modern communications, however, because in the past, reaching out after a loss of electricity or when inundated by floodwaters was far more challenging than it is today- as demonstrated by the use of social networks throughout the event.

Luckily for people in storm ravaged areas, cell phone service stayed mostly consistent while the storm either raged or weakened, depending on the region. More than 130,000 residents in Virginia and South Carolina were affected by disruptions to landline service, but cell phone service providers reported fewer sweeping outages as damaged towers were supported by backup service.

The New York Times spoke to service spokespersons for wireless networks, who confirmed intermittent outages in affected areas, but say that the paradigm surrounding the use of landlines versus cell phones during disasters has begun to shift:

But the evolution of the landline — which first saw cordless phones (that do not work in blackouts) and Internet-based telephony (which requires a battery backup in case of blackouts) — has led to a decrease in its reliability. That hole has been filled, to some degree, by wireless voice and data networks.

Nationwide, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said no outages of 911 service were reported in any of the areas affected by Hurricane Irene, and that no centers were without service during the potential disaster. A spokesman for AT&T confirmed remaining cell phone service disruptions in some areas, and said crews are working to assess the damage and determine when damaged equipment can safely be restored.

Cell Phone Service Stayed Mostly Steady During Irene, Landlines Affected is a post from: The Inquisitr

If putting them on hold or an air horn gets tiring, you can always try convincing them they’ve accidentally been connected to emergency services.

[via]

[Video] A Novel Way of Dealing With Telemarketers is a post from: The Inquisitr

Edgar Galvis, a 51-year-old man from Queens, New York, was one of the many people who cleaned up the debris in office buildings following the 9/11 attacks that brought down the World Trade Center.

Originally from Bogota, Columbia, he came to the the United States in  February 2001 and after the attack was hired by contractors to clean the dust and rubble from the Merrill Lynch office. For $800 a week he would have to work 16 hour days with only a jumpsuit and paper mask for protection.

In the years that followed he became stricken with throat cancer and as a result is jobless, in debt to the tune of $30,000 and lives with his fiancee and her two children. In 2005 he was handed a law firm’s business card and told that they could help him get compensated for his health problems.

The firm’s representative told him in a followup meeting that he stood to get 60 percent of whatever the lawyers managed to negotiate as a settlement.

Then in April 2010 he was told that he had gotten a $10,000 offer which he would be smart to take because if they went to court and they lost Galvis could end up owing over $100,000 in costs. Needless to say Galvis took the settlement and that is when insult was added to injury.

His award had been $10,005, but his lawyers at the firm Worby, Groner, Edelman & Napoli Bern lopped off $2,579 for unitemized legal expenses.

Then they took a 33.3 percent fee of $2,124.

They also subtracted $352, a fee to the lawyer who referred him.

The remaining $4,950 was withheld for unspecified “liens,” the letter says. Galvis thinks this was repayment of workers’ compensation for aid.

“I have hit rock bottom,” said Galvis, who is jobless and $30,000 in debt. “I was expecting a check, and you can imagine how I felt when I opened it. I couldn’t believe it. I thought it was a joke.”

via New York Post

Unfortunately it wasn’t a joke. Not only had the law firm mislead him they now took the last of Galvis’ dignity without even blinking an eye.

Isn’t it wonderful how we have treated people who put their lives on the line following the attack as they gave their heart and soul to a city and a country in order to build it back up.

9/11 WTC worker stricken with cancer gets a settlement of $0 thanks to his lawyers is a post from: The Inquisitr

The woman was later overheard complaining that Facebook also must be down, because no one wrote “Happy Birthday! xxx lol” on her Wall.

[Pic] Forever Alone 911 Call is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Associated Press has confirmed that DNA results done on the body of Osama bin Laden have confirmed the corpse of the man killed in the raid yesterday in Abbottabad, Pakistan is that of the Al Qaeda leader.

Bin Laden was killed along with two and a woman who was used as a shield by one of the unidentified combatants. DNA from bin Laden’s body was matched against that of his deceased sister in making the positive identification:

The officials said the DNA testing alone offered a “99.9 percent” certainty that bin Laden was shot dead in a daring U.S. military operation in Pakistan. Detailed photo analysis by the CIA, confirmation by other people at the raid site and matching physical features like bin Laden’s height all helped confirmed the identification.

Citing an unwillingness of any country to accept his remains, bin Laden’s body was buried at sea- a decision that some Muslim clerics have decried as an insult to Islam. It is unclear whether photographic evidence of bin Laden’s death will be released to global media.

DNA match confirmed on bin Laden body is a post from: The Inquisitr

A Twitter user in Pakistan was a bit put out by the noisy raids taking place near him in Abbottabad, Pakistan.

It turns out Sohain Athar, aka @reallyvirtual, was livetweeting the raid that resulted in the death of September 11th mastermind Osama bin Laden. Athar’s tweets were posted in chronological order by Mediaite, and are pasted below. Later in the evening, Athar became increasingly irritated at the growing worldwide interest in his tweet-witness account, but the position in which Athar finds himself is interesting. Generally social media witnessing has been through direct and intentional involvement- Athar just wanted the helicopters to STFU and had no idea he was going to become a small historical footnote via Twitter.

From @reallyvirtual (with others)via Mediaite:

Helicopter hovering above Abbottabad at 1AM (is a rare event).

Go away helicopter – before I take out my giant swatter :-/

A huge window shaking bang here in Abbottabad Cantt. I hope its not the start of something nasty :-S

@m0hcin all silent after the blast, but a friend heard it 6 km away too… the helicopter is gone too.

@m0hcin http://bit.ly/ljB6p6 seems like my giant swatter worked !

@m0hcin the few people online at this time of the night are saying one of the copters was not Pakistani…

han3yy Hania Ahmed  by ReallyVirtual OMG :S Bomb Blasts in Abbottabad.. I hope everyone is fine

@raihak I try, man, I try (in reply to entreaty to “be safe!”)

@raihak Funny, moving to Abbottabad was part of the ‘being safe’ strategy

Since taliban (probably) don’t have helicpoters, and since they’re saying it was not “ours”, so must be a complicated situation #abbottabad

@raihak yep, the mad power cuts have reached abbottabad – 14 hours daily – luckily I have a generator AND a UPS at the coffee shop

@tahirakram yea. *hides his giant swatter*

@kashaziz technically, it is unidentified until identified, and it is a flying object, so year, why the hell not, we have seen weirder stuff

@tahirakram they’re not saying anything

The abbottabad helicopter/UFO was shot down near the Bilal Town area, and there’s report of a flash. People saying it could be a drone.

@wqs figures, if they have the right to shoot planes flying over the president house, the must have the same instructions for PMA

@smedica people are saying it was not a technical fault and it was shot down. I heard it CIRCLE 3-4 times above, sounded purposeful.

@tahirakram very likely – but it was too noisy to be a spy craft, or, a very poor spy craft it was.

@smedica It must have been more, I started noticing the helicpoter when the noise got irritating – which part of Abbottabd are you in?

@smedica I live near Jalal Baba Auditorium

@smedica ’safer’ is a relative term that has lost its meaning in Pakistan

Here’s the location of the Abbottabad crash according to some people >>> http://on.fb.me/khjf34

Two helicpoters, one down, could actually be the training accident scenario they’re saying it was >> http://bit.ly/ioGE6O

and now I feel I must apologize to the pilot about the swatter tweets :-/

And now, a plane flying over Abbottabad…

@raihak The day there is uninterrupted electricity in Lahore for a whole month, I will start packing my bags, until then, Abbottabad is home

1 dead and 1 injured in Abbottabad for heli crashed

Interesting rumors in the otherwise uneventful Abbottabad air today
naqvi rt by ReallyVirtual I think the helicopter crash in Abbottabad, Pakistan and the President Obama breaking news address are connected.

Twitter user in Pakistan live-tweets bin Laden compound raid unknowingly is a post from: The Inquisitr

We posted a screenshot with an unfortunate misspelling announcing the death of Osama bin Laden, but this is a bit beyond the pale.

Another Fox News Freudian slip on bin Laden death is a post from: The Inquisitr

Citing scads of text messages sent by panicked students and staff to emergency services during the Virginia Tech massacre, the FCC said they would like begin equipping 911 dispatchers with the ability to receive reports through text messages or even streaming video.

The functionality would come in handy in situations where background noise makes accurate relaying of information via phone difficult, or even when the victim of a crime in progress is unable to speak or doesn’t want to alert a criminal to the presence of a cell or smartphone. The FCC said the enhanced capabilities could only assist in gathering information about emergencies in progress:

“The technological limitations of 9-1-1 can have tragic, real-world consequences,” the release said. “During the 2007 Virginia Tech campus shooting, students and witnesses desperately tried to send texts to 9-1-1 that local dispatchers never received. If these messages had gone through, first responders may have arrived on the scene faster with firsthand intelligence about the life-threatening situation that was unfolding.”

Wired points out that the FCC hasn’t gone so far as to say whether the hopefully eventual upgrades will be a requirement for local dispatches or just a suggestion, or whether the upgrades will be a federal initiative or one that is implemented differently from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. 70% of all calls to emergency services now originate from cellular phones.

FTC wants 911 dispatchers to accept texts, streaming cell phone video is a post from: The Inquisitr