Like NY, Boston won't cower to terrorism

Boston is learning nicely. But we're the ones who wrote the rules on responding to one of these attacks.

Taking the terror out of terrorism. Refusing to give the killers what they're desperate for. Holding on to the values, the justice and the decency that make us better than our enemies.

But in the 11 1/2 years since the World Trade Center attacks, we have come to understand a few things:

The rule of law is at the core of being American. Judging people by race or religion gets us nowhere. High-priced high-security measures can keep us only so secure.

And now Boston is following our lead.

We win these battles in the end by living the lives we intended to.

We don't cower. We don't bend. We don't become them.

1. We let 'em scare us.

2. We cowerat home on the couch.

3. We don't travel, race or work in tall buildings.

4. We don't party loud and late.

5. If we don't do all those crazy fun things we might not have done in the first place just to let the terrorists know they won't ever win -- so there!

Sandy didn't discriminate. The superstorm slammed areas rich and poor. But recovery has been so much slower for people without the capital to quickly rebuild. Eileen Auld has a mouthful of a corporate title. She is Citibank's tri-state regional director for Citi Community Development. But living in Forest Hills with a summer cottage in Breezy Point, she's also seen and felt Sandy's wrath. Since the storm, she's helped deploy more than 1 million rebuilding dollars in "underserved communities," backed groups such as the Long Island Housing Partnership, driven customers back to small businesses and coordinated with local governments. The point of it all? "Making a positive impact among those who have lost so much and helping the region bounce back stronger than ever."

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