nabeepchen

On a bulletin board which shall remain unnamed, there was, of course, a discussion of the London bombing. And a heated discussion of how the media is focused on this incident, but doesn’t give the same passion to other horrors–such as the genocide in the Sudan, or the 3 million who have died in civil war that has been raging in the Congo, or even pay much attention to people getting killed on a regular basis in Iraq.

Yes, I will concede, Americans and Europeans are far more interested in a terrorist attack in London than say, one in India. Unless, of course, a significant amount of Europeans or Americans were killed. But more importantly, is the nature of the incident. It has a lot to do with the fact that it’s a sudden occurrence, not a daily tragedy, such as what is happening in the Sudan and Iraq.

Let’s take the analogy from a medical point of view. Your spouse dies of cancer. He has been ill for two years, and has reached a terminal state, and then dies. It is sad, it is a loss, but the death is sort of expected. It is not a surprise. The fact that it is expected doesn’t make the loss any more tolerable, but the family has had time to come to terms with the impending death.

But let’s say that this same person was suddenly killed in a car accident. One minute, the man is healthy, happy, laughing, talking about dinner plans for that evening and painting the kitchen. And then he steps out, crosses the street to mail a letter, and is gone. Run over by a drunk driver. In five seconds, the world changes.

And that is how I see the London bombing. The war in Iraq, the daily death tolls, the hardship–it is horrible and not in any way a lesser tragedy than in London. Millions killed in the Sudan, constant instability, devastation everywhere. But these incidents are long term, they are like the chronic illness. The bombing in London was a shock. It was sudden, unexpected. People were on their way to work, it was a day like any other.

While London is certainly no stranger to terrorist attacks, this one was different. More dramatic in scope, more devastating, and without warning. It was the same situation that happened in Spain. Both countries have been dealing with terrorist attacks for decades, but nothing on this magnitude.

And so, while the tragedy in London is not “worse” than what happens on a daily basis in other parts of the world, the shock of it has hit home. The same as the planes flying into the World Trade Towers–you realize that safety is an illusion.

There really is no way to protect subways, buses, railroads, and so on. Can you imagine if people have to pass through a metal detector to get on the subway in NY, or if your briefcases and packages have to go through X-ray? Can you imagine trying to do this at rush hour?

What I truly hope is that the London bombing doesn’t turn into a backlash against the city’s Muslim residents, the vast majority of whom are innocent, law-abiding citizens who are undoubtedly horrified by these events, as much as anyone else.

Peace. Have a safe evening.

Why am I not surprised. The BBC says that Blair was “visibly shocked.” Is he that dumb, or that arrogant, to believe that England would be spared? Afterall, he knowingly sent British troops to attack another country, he is still engaged in a war, so why the surprise?

But just the same old rhetoric, like he’s trying to be Winston Churchill and boost the morale.

Speaking before he left Gleneagles, he said: “It is important that those engaged in terrorism realise that our determination to defend our values and our way of life is greater than their determination to cause death and destruction to innocent people in a desire to impose extremism on the world.

“Whatever they do, it is our determination that they will never succeed in destroying what we hold dear in this country and in other civilised nations throughout the world.”

Like Bush, who is very good at delivering canned, meaningless rheoric, he very carefully ignores the fact that there may be some reason for this attack. I mean, Britain attacked Iraq. Why shouldn’t Iraqis and their supporters fight back–and attack Britain?

Terrorism is a terrible thing, and today’s events are truly tragic. But at long as people like Blair, who are unfortunately in power, make it sound like this type of attack is an attempt to destroy their civilized way of life, and pretend that there is no other possible explanation for it, then we’re just going to see more of the same. This is retaliation, my dear Tony. So stop being such an ass before even more people are killed. You can begin by admitting that you lied to the British people about Iraq. That would be a good start.

I didn’t really want to blog on this and get into a whole political diatribe–but yet, it’s not something to ignore. At least from the health standpoint of my blog. At last report there are at least 40 people dead and over a 1,000 wounded. I imagine the medical staff in London is quite busy at this time, doing everything they can to for the victims of this terrible incident.

This is a far cry from the clean “sterile” strike that Blair and Bush promised in Iraq. They sold the war in Iraq as if it would be over in 48 hours. That a surgical team would drop from the sky, quickly make a sterile incision, remove Saddam Hussein and replace him with a pro-West puppet, stitch it back up and leave. Painless and totally risk free.

Instead, tens of thousands have died, tens of thousands have been injured. Iraq is a semi-wasteland, ethnic tensions are brewing big time, and the nation is unstable. And oh yes, the American and British troops are still there.

What can Tony Blair possibly say? That the war in Iraq was worth getting London blown up? That they’re going to “fight on” and not let the terrorists win? That the war in Iraq was justified, and that the people who died today should be happy to sacrifice their lives for the greater cause? Really, what can the fool say this time?

Slowly but surely, I think that we are learning that we can no longer do whatever we want in far off lands, and not pay a price for it. The English have paid a terrible price today for their leader’s arrogance and dishonesty.

What next?