The bananas sat rotting. The bagels would have gone stale. The plastic trash bags used as makeshift parkas whipped around street corners, only to be snagged by prickly bushes. THE BIGGER picture to draw from Monday’s violence is that you can’t reason with terrorists, nor should we try. Their way of thinking is not sane. They don’t deserve a minute of press.
Otherwise the downtown streets were eerily quiet Tuesday in the aftermath of Monday’s two bombings that killed three and maimed 176 at the Boston Marathon.
As with most instances of terrorism, the victims are innocent. The 23,000 runners and their support network of friends and family were crammed in Beantown for the sole reason of witnessing the runners’ collective milestone of running 26.2 miles.
By its very nature, a marathon is a celebration. Clear back in 1896, the original Olympic marathon was in honor of the legendary Pheidippides who in 490 B.C. was sent to fetch military aid 25-plus miles down the road to Athens.
Only a year later, in 1897, Boston began its marathon tradition in honor of Paul Revere and his famous ride warning of the arrival of British troops by “land or by sea.”
Marathons sprang up across the world, recognizing significant events. In Slovakia, the Kosice Marathon, and in South Africa, the Comrades Marathon, commemorate the dead from World War I.
The Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon affirms life after the terrorist bombings of 1995.
Monday’s designees were the 26 first-graders and teachers slain in the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre earlier this year in Newtown, Conn.
The two homemade explosives were packed with nails, pellets and ball bearings. Officials termed the weaponry as “antipersonnel munitions,” loaded with an intent to maim. And kill.
Martin Richard, an 8-year-old boy, died from one of the explosions. The third-grader was caught up in the enthusiasm of his dad, Bill, running the marathon. As soon as the senior Richard crossed the finish line his son ran out to hug him before returning to his mom and sister, who remain hospitalized from the explosions.
As of yet, no motives are known. Or who did it.
Was it to send a message of protest? Prithee, what possibly could an eight-year-old boy have done to warrant such violence?
The best response is to focus on the victims, eight who remain in critical condition and many, many others who suffered lost limbs, shattered eardrums and shrapnel wounds.
Focus on healing and moving on. Get out. Strap on your walking shoes.
Terrorists want us to cower in fear. Not on your life.
— Susan Lynn
