I've been thinking a lot about yesterday's horrific, tragic events. I wanted to post something about life, loss, and grieving...but the whole situation is so unbelievably awful that I find myself at a loss for words.
I cannot seem to get over the irony of this situation. This may make me sound heartless, but what are 33 students compared to a marketplace full of Iraqi women and children? Or perhaps two towers full of innocent New Yorkers? Violence is everywhere - including all around the world, and it seems a bit strange that all the foreign governments are issuing statements of condolences. Is it just because we're America, and they are not? I don't think the White House releases a press statement everytime a suicide bomber hits a bustling, pedestrian area in Kabul - or when another wave of genocide sweeps across the Sudan.
Where are the detailed articles about the victims of needless violence in other countries? Where are the candlelight vigils for those people? Why aren't they just as important? Why isn't the blogging community up in arms about them? Are we, as bloggers, just emulating our own twisted, off-kilter American media?
As usual, there are a million answers for the questions I have bouncing around in my head. I cannot pretend to understand the depth of suffering and hurt that is present in/around Blacksburg, and in the homes of the families of each victim. My heart goes out to each and every one of the victims - including those victimized by the terror of witnessing the shootings, the parents frozen in horror, wondering whether or not their child survived, and the list goes on. I think this kind of occurrence forces us to consider what we think the value of a human life is - and apply that logic to our interpretation of all people, in all places.
I cannot seem to get over the irony of this situation. This may make me sound heartless, but what are 33 students compared to a marketplace full of Iraqi women and children? Or perhaps two towers full of innocent New Yorkers? Violence is everywhere - including all around the world, and it seems a bit strange that all the foreign governments are issuing statements of condolences. Is it just because we're America, and they are not? I don't think the White House releases a press statement everytime a suicide bomber hits a bustling, pedestrian area in Kabul - or when another wave of genocide sweeps across the Sudan.
Where are the detailed articles about the victims of needless violence in other countries? Where are the candlelight vigils for those people? Why aren't they just as important? Why isn't the blogging community up in arms about them? Are we, as bloggers, just emulating our own twisted, off-kilter American media?
As usual, there are a million answers for the questions I have bouncing around in my head. I cannot pretend to understand the depth of suffering and hurt that is present in/around Blacksburg, and in the homes of the families of each victim. My heart goes out to each and every one of the victims - including those victimized by the terror of witnessing the shootings, the parents frozen in horror, wondering whether or not their child survived, and the list goes on. I think this kind of occurrence forces us to consider what we think the value of a human life is - and apply that logic to our interpretation of all people, in all places.
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