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Previously Recorded by Phyllis Schlafly
Tomorrow is the anniversary of the infamous 9/11 attack on the towers of the World Trade Center. Perhaps nothing is so characteristically American as the proud skyscrapers that make up the skyline of our major cities. No doubt that's why Osama Bin Laden wanted to humiliate us by destroying two of our tallest buildings.
The story of how skyscrapers are built is told with gusto by Jim Rasenberger in the new book High Steel: The Daring Men Who Built the World's Greatest Skyline. Ironworkers are a special breed. Many are descended from Mohawk Indians and Newfoundlanders, both of whom show a talent for doing jobs that require great strength and agility at very high altitudes. No one really knows why these particular men thrive on high steelwork; it's just a fact of life that those ethnic groups are most skilled in high steel. The author gives the reader an illuminating account of the architecture and engineering behind the bridges and buildings. The most interesting parts of the book deal with the colorful "cowboys of the skies" who made raising the enormous steel beams their life's calling. Harrowing accounts are given of famous accidents, like the collapse of the Quebec Bridge in 1885, when 75 workers plunged to their deaths in the icy waters below. The accident destroyed the reputation of a world-renowned engineer whose calculations about bracing the beams proved to be not correct.
Steelworkers know how to take beams apart as well as assemble them, and this skill was put to good use in the days after 9/11 when the wreckage had to be cleared from the World Trade Center site. You will be inspired by the can-do patriotism of the workers as they carried out their duties. This book is a pleasant mix of written and oral history, social commentary and engineering — a must for anyone who has ever marveled at the beauty of a bridge or skyscraper. The name of this book is High Steel: The Daring Men Who Built the World's Greatest Skyline. The author Jim Rasenberger.
