FCC Mourns Dead

In the first open meeting since new commissioners were installed, all four FCC commissioners Thursday wore purple ribbons to honor the dead from the terrorist attacks and security was increased at the agency.
Chairman Michael Powell said, “Despite its range and versatility, the human language fails me in these weary days; there are no words to capture the depth of our collective sadness, of our outrage at the heinous events that befell our nation this week. Sadly, there will only be a few degrees of separation between all of us. Some of our extended FCC family has died, and we have employees who are grieving for loved ones that perished. For them we all pray. … Our reaction must be to defy these dastardly acts and not cower or be deterred from our duties: to our families, to our friends, and to our countrymen. The flame of the American ideal may flicker, but it will never be extinguished. So we are here today. We will do our small part and press on with our business — solemnly, but resolutely.”
Powell praised Verizon and AT&T for keeping telephone service available under difficult circumstances.