The Boston Bombings

I have had quite a few things on my mind as of late, and have been looking towards certain upcoming blog entries with interest. Had one in mind for today, too, actually. But today, there is obviously only one subject that is on anyone's mind at the moment, and that is the tragedy that occurred at the Boston Marathon earlier today.

Perhaps it is strange, but I only found out about it hours after it happened. My son was watching cartoons, and nothing ever came on to suggest  that some newsworthy event had transpired. So, when we went in the car to go visit Grandma and Grandpa, and the news came on NPR about these attacks, it took me by surprise, to say the least.

This was almost like a tale of two days today for me.

I had a wonderful shift last night, and left early, feeling good. I went to Paterson, New Jersey (not normally cause for celebration), but got important and necessary things done there at the courthouse.

That done, I walked to the car and drove home. It was a beautiful and sunny spring morning, and I was feeling good. So, i decided to forego sleeping for a little while, put on shorts and a t-shirt, and went for a hike. I remember stopping at a lookout (where I was, at the Weis Ecology Center, has a "stone sofa" that someone made), and looking out at the skyline of New York, probably some twenty or so miles away as the bird flies.

Everything felt good. It was warm, and getting warmer. Spring was in the air, and some good things have been happening in my life. You don't always get to feel like this, so I wanted to enjoy it while it lasted, right?

But, I had to get some sleep. After all, my work shift would start at midnight, and by now, it was fast approaching one o'clock in the afternoon. Plus, I had to watch my son by 4pm, and obviously, that meant very little sleep.

When it was time for me to watch him, I won't lie: I quickly fell asleep again. He was thrilled believe me. Before long, he could not stand it anymore, and kept coming in, asking if I was awake yet. It took a while, but I finally woke up.

It was a rough day, that latter half was. My son's report card came in and, believe me, it was not good news. So, I kind of had to lay into him a little bit. Not that I enjoy it, believe me! But that is a part of parenting, and it's a part that needs to be taken seriously. You do what you have to do. So we had a lengthy talk, and he now understands (hopefully) the difference between saying you are going to do something, and doing it. He also knows the meaning of the word discipline, which he understands as doing something that you need to do, even when you don't want to do it.  Finally, he would no ,longer be able to play the Wii, and I would take his toy guns away (he has a bit of fixation on toy guns, for whatever the reason), until he showed measurable improvement. Let's see if I got through to him.

Anyway, I found out about the attacks in Boston much later than most people. I must have been asleep when it actually happened.

It was, of course, horrifying. The details were sketchy so, admittedly, when I heard "two dead, many more wounded in Boston", the first assumption was that it was another shooting. A sigh probably escaped out of me at that point.

But then, when they mentioned how many wounded, it did not add up. How could a shooter have shot and wounded so many people, but only killed two?

As details emerged (and it took a surprisingly long time), I learned about the bombings. At first, they mentioned "an explosion" in Boston, and I could not be certain that it was some terrorist attack. But when there were reports of more than one, and at the Boston Marathon, any doubts were removed.

A part of me had long expected this, truth be told. I'm surprised that it did not happen sooner. After September 11th, I swore that not a year would pass before some other major incident. But it is now almost twelve years later, and this is the first major terrorist attack since then.

To the best of my understanding, there is a "person of interest" (is it me, or is there something strangely pleasant sounding about a term that should sound much darker and sinister?) being held for questioning - a Saudi man.

The scenes were horrific, with people losing limbs in the blast. Losing lives in the blast (latest news as of the time of my writing this was three dead, 144 injured, according to CNN).

Now, the questions and debates will arise. Why did this happen (unanswerable)? How did this happen (answerable - and we'll likely get more details in the coming days)?

The fact of the matter is this: if we want to live in a free society, then such things will inevitably occur in this day and age. It has happened before. Do you really doubt that it will happen again? After all, George W. Bush was right: it would indeed be easier in a dictatorship, with greater control of the flow of humanity. Allowing people to more or less roam free and do as they please? Well, that provides risks. At the most extreme, incidents like these are the result.

Some will advocate revenge at all costs. My hope is that there is not the extreme reaction of excess (and counterproductive) nationalism that we have seen in the past, although that remains to be seen. Whenever things like this happen that showcase the very worst possibilities that humans are capable of (cold-blooded murder in this case), the reactions usually breed a cheap, mirrored reflections of hateful sentiments, often times posing as a strong, "patriotic" (read: xenophobic nationalism) reaction.

It already seems to be a tragedy that has been utilized for political purposes. "Why didn't Obama use the word "terror"?

All of that is immaterial. These are the cycles of our modern existence. As a society, we tend to react to things. Like it or not, that seems to be how we operate. We wait until something bad happens, and then point the finger of blame on who we feel is responsible.

But here is the thing: the reaction to this horrific event had some positives, as well. To their credit, police and other emergency personnel present were the ones seen running towards the scenes of the explosions. With uncertainty as to what was going to happen next, and questions surely about their own safety possibly being compromised, the emergency response in Boston was nothing short of inspirational. And if it can be said that there is any kind of a silver lining to this, perhaps that is it. That no matter how dire the situation, no matter how dangerous, there always seems to be some who are there to help.

As much as we are reminded about the worst that humanity has to offer by such events (and the reactions in the immediate aftermath), it also reminds us of the strength and resolve that some will always have towards improving the situation, and showing their decency. In the process, they lift us all up, and restore a little bit of hope in a humanity that, far too often, many of us lose faith in, time and again.

On Facebook this evening, after the news of the Boston bombings were all over the place, I saw some posts with varying opinions and offerings. Some were simple sentiments of prayers and sympathies. Others expressed horror at the situation, and some were (already) advocating conspiracy theories. I saw one that claimed that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) "just happened" to be in Newtown on the day of the shooting, and they also "just happened" to be in Boston yesterday. That is the kind of "report" that you and I simply cannot put store in. After all, how do they know that the DHS was in Newtown on that day? the same lady that posted that, also posted something from someone else that claimed that there was a "Thoughts Go out To All Involved In The Boston Explosions" webpage two days before the explosions actually occurred, with a photograph to prove it.

Maybe. Who knows? Strange things happen, right? There was a real case of some student in New Jersey, or Brooklyn, or somewhere with a view of the Twin Towers the week before the 9/11 attacks who got in some heated discussion in class (I think it was a history class), and who stood up and pointed to the towers and, to really bring his point home, declared that they would not be standing in a week. That, i heard on the radio (I think it was NPR) in the weeks following September 11th. Some people probably did know about the 9/11 attacks before they happen, and maybe some people did know about these Boston explosions before they happen.

But ultimately, that does not change what happened. If you get too wrapped up in that sort of thing, the list of conspiracies might never end. And it is harder than ever these days to sort fact from fiction.

There was another theme to the posts on Facebook last evening, however. There were quotes and thoughts by various people, and one of the quotes really resonated with me. It made me think about those police officers that I already mentioned, the ones that responded and provided assistance to those in need - and there was no shortage of them yesterday in Boston, or in New York almost twelve years ago.  It offered a different view, a different perspective on dreary news events that we seem to see every day. It was from none other than Mr. Rogers, and since it offered a more promising and hopeful side to news that often deprives us of our sense of promise and hope for humanity, and for the future, I will conclude this by sharing it with you here today:

“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”   ― Fred Rogers