I am not sure why people bring religion into something like this, maybe to make themselves feel better or attempt to grasp something they do not understand, but in reality it is really simple. You are above a fire created by jet fuel in a building. In places the fire reaches several thousand degrees. Heat rises. Add these together and I'd jump. Anyone would. Doesn't require much thought.
As far as the photograph is concerned, I would hate to see someone make a profit from something as tragic as the end of a human life, but in reality many have and still do. Perhaps the image will have some historical value in the end, but whatever its value, the man in it will see none, and it is no use to him. I am sure careers were made that day, and grand egos ruled many a journalist. I find Meyerowitz' book on the aftermath somewhat distasteful in many ways because of his perceived self importance. He seemed to me to be capitalizing on the tragedy, but I'll admit I don't know all the details.
In the end it was a tragic event and we will never really know the truth behind what happened that day.
Patrick |