They will keep running
28/04/13 05:26
We were with friends last evening remembering the life of a wonderful woman who lived to the age of 93, had a marvelous attitude, an accurate memory, a zest for life, a love for others, and an ability to let go of the past and get on with the present. More than a few of us expressed our admiration for her and a desire to be like her as we moved into our aging years. In the midst of the storytelling, there was a bit of catching up on other family members and friends of friends who were not able to attend the gathering. I heard the story of granddaughter of the woman we were remembering, daughter of friends of ours whom we haven’t seen in many years. She was just a child when we last saw her. Now she is a mother with young boys and a busy life. She is also a runner and she finished the Boston Marathon, with her husband and sons waiting at the finish line just a few minutes before the bombs exploded – early enough that they had walked away from the blast site before the bombs went off.
There was a twinge in my stomach as I heard the story. Boston seems a long way away and the marathon bombs seemed to be about something that happened to someone else. Then, all of a sudden, here was someone I knew who had been there, whose children could easily have been the victims had the timing been a bit different. I had a name and a connection to the events.
Even though the child was not the child of my friends, even though I did not know any of the relatives, the reality is that the eight-year-old child, killed in a peaceful gathering of civilians did die. He was the child of those who loved him. He was the child of parents who had friends. There were those who thought they were removed from the events of the day who woke up the next day to find themselves intimately connected.
It is only one reason why the act of placing a bomb in such a place is such an inexcusable act. The victims bear no relation to the “causes.” They have no power to effect political changes. The act of placing the bomb does not accomplish anything. It only kills, maims, and leaves innocents with broken bodies and broken hearts.
It is not the act of a rational mind.
I suppose that it is possible that we will never have a full understanding of the dynamics that led to that day. It appears that the mastermind of the attacks is now dead. His brother may have information that will help investigators understand the crime better. There may be things we can learn that will help prevent similar attacks in the future. The careful crime work by the Boston Police, the FBI, the ATF and others is important and must be pursued. But in the end, and unthinkable act leaves us without the capacity to understand.
There are far too many examples of where senseless violence has given rise to more senseless violence. In grief and anger people strike out in irrational ways and the violence escalates as the number of innocent victims rises. In Northern Ireland, in central Africa, in the Middle East, in place after place around our globe the bombers practice their imprecise craft not because it makes sense or because it will accomplish definable goals, but simply as an expression of hatred and anger.
The Boston Marathon is run on Patriots’ Day. The day is not a national holiday, but is observed in Massachusetts, Maine and Wisconsin as a civic holiday commemorating the anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775. These were the first battles of the American Revolutionary War. The day is now observed on the Third Monday of April. Observances include re-enactments of the battles. What is more difficult to imagine, in our contemporary setting, are the dynamics that led to the battles. The rebel leaders were less organized than we like to remember and many of them were motivated by visions of personal gain. There were those who were simply opposed to everything British and who were as slow to offer fair solutions as they were quick to point out the problems of British ideas to balance the budget.
The first battles of the revolution were probably started prematurely – at least from the perspective of those who took a more measured and careful approach to the process of political change. The impromptu militia that was organized in Boston that night – the one that confronted the British force heading toward Lexington and Concord – was probably more fueled by alcohol than by a disciplined approach to political change.
They say that history is written by the victors. The stories we know of the American Revolution would be different had the military battles had different outcomes. It seems quite possible that there were some good leaders among the British. Nathaniel Philbrick in his book “Bunker Hill” is sympathetic to British commander Thomas Gage: “While Gage had honored the civil liberties of the patriots, the patriots had refused to respect the rights of those with whom they did not agree.” But this perspective is not the one that we have been taught. We have forgotten the business gains and amassed wealth of those who reused to pay taxes. We have forgotten that those who suffered and died were not the politicians who seemed to develop an art of staying in locations that were distant from risk.
In our day, those who plant bombs and terror are relegating their ideas to the refuse heap of history. They will not succeed and by their choice of cowardly weapons they are assuring that they will not be heard. History will likely not remember them at all and if it does, the memory will not be kind.
Next year, on Patriots’ Day, the Boston Marathon will be run. The runners will be everyday people – the people that you and I know. The crowd will be larger and the gathering will be peaceful. The memory of the terror will become more distant with each running of the race. And the story we will tell in years to come is of how people with bombs failed to stop the running.
Even though the child was not the child of my friends, even though I did not know any of the relatives, the reality is that the eight-year-old child, killed in a peaceful gathering of civilians did die. He was the child of those who loved him. He was the child of parents who had friends. There were those who thought they were removed from the events of the day who woke up the next day to find themselves intimately connected.
It is only one reason why the act of placing a bomb in such a place is such an inexcusable act. The victims bear no relation to the “causes.” They have no power to effect political changes. The act of placing the bomb does not accomplish anything. It only kills, maims, and leaves innocents with broken bodies and broken hearts.
It is not the act of a rational mind.
I suppose that it is possible that we will never have a full understanding of the dynamics that led to that day. It appears that the mastermind of the attacks is now dead. His brother may have information that will help investigators understand the crime better. There may be things we can learn that will help prevent similar attacks in the future. The careful crime work by the Boston Police, the FBI, the ATF and others is important and must be pursued. But in the end, and unthinkable act leaves us without the capacity to understand.
There are far too many examples of where senseless violence has given rise to more senseless violence. In grief and anger people strike out in irrational ways and the violence escalates as the number of innocent victims rises. In Northern Ireland, in central Africa, in the Middle East, in place after place around our globe the bombers practice their imprecise craft not because it makes sense or because it will accomplish definable goals, but simply as an expression of hatred and anger.
The first battles of the revolution were probably started prematurely – at least from the perspective of those who took a more measured and careful approach to the process of political change. The impromptu militia that was organized in Boston that night – the one that confronted the British force heading toward Lexington and Concord – was probably more fueled by alcohol than by a disciplined approach to political change.
They say that history is written by the victors. The stories we know of the American Revolution would be different had the military battles had different outcomes. It seems quite possible that there were some good leaders among the British. Nathaniel Philbrick in his book “Bunker Hill” is sympathetic to British commander Thomas Gage: “While Gage had honored the civil liberties of the patriots, the patriots had refused to respect the rights of those with whom they did not agree.” But this perspective is not the one that we have been taught. We have forgotten the business gains and amassed wealth of those who reused to pay taxes. We have forgotten that those who suffered and died were not the politicians who seemed to develop an art of staying in locations that were distant from risk.
In our day, those who plant bombs and terror are relegating their ideas to the refuse heap of history. They will not succeed and by their choice of cowardly weapons they are assuring that they will not be heard. History will likely not remember them at all and if it does, the memory will not be kind.
Next year, on Patriots’ Day, the Boston Marathon will be run. The runners will be everyday people – the people that you and I know. The crowd will be larger and the gathering will be peaceful. The memory of the terror will become more distant with each running of the race. And the story we will tell in years to come is of how people with bombs failed to stop the running.