24 hours have passed. Much has already been said. Of course, our hearts go out to all affected, and we pray for an end to senseless bloodshed. Others have expressed these sentiments better than me. What I feel needs to be stated - and I've heard little about so far from others - is the reason why our world is so unsafe.
Actually, I believe there are two reasons, and both lie with our government. First is our military aggression around the world. We have caused death and injury to over a million people just since 9/11. How can we possibly condone such action? This is not retaliation or retribution for the lives we lost on September 11th. This death toll far exceeds any sort of honest justice if, indeed, an eye-for-an-eye mentality can be called "honest justice."
Why shouldn't we expect a terrible backlash for all the pain and suffering we've caused? Who is the biggest terrorist in the world? The U.S. of A. We firebombed civilians in Dresden during WWII. We dropped nuclear bombs - TWICE - in Japan. We used Agent Orange and other toxic and carcinogenic chemicals in Vietnam. We used "depleted" uranium shells and phosphorus bombs in the Gulf War. And now drones terrorize people who never know if the sound of the robotic missile will be the last they ever hear.
If the Boston terrorist is discovered to have been inspired by our actions in foreign countries I will not be surprised. But I also won't be shocked if it turns out to be a home-grown terrorist, because our government is inciting them, too.
It started several years ago. Our government relaxed controls and then turned a blind eye to financial sector shenanigans. When the bubble burst, our economy imploded, and the man (and woman and child) on the street was left reeling. Jobs were lost, or hours cut back. Loans were called in, or houses foreclosed on. Credit card companies changed the rules overnight with upped interest rates and lowered ceilings. Student loan debt soared. Medical costs continued to climb, as well as health insurance (if one could afford it at all).
I don't need to go into too much detail because we've all lived through it - are
still living it, even now. This failure to regulate, followed by a failure to support a safety net, has stressed too many people to the breaking point. This is not a time for austerity when so many are hurting. It cannot be solely up to the churches to provide foodbanks and run clothing drives. We'll do our part but we can't provide the jobs that make people honest, that help people to have a sense of self-worth.
There are U.S. citizens who have turned their stress upon themselves and taken their own lives. There are, unfortunately, others who have turned their anger outward, and directed it at others, even innocents who have no relationship to the perpetrator. Whether it is road rage running someone off the highway, or taking a loaded gun into a school, or detonating a homemade bomb doesn't matter. They are all incidents of someone who has gone over the edge, gone beyond reason, and allowed their own anger and grief to control their actions.
I want our government leaders to take responsibility. Stop the killings abroad and bring our troops safely home. Fund the infrastructure projects that have been neglected. Fund our schools -
all schools - from pre-K to college. Write off student loan debt. Provide true universal health care. Regulate the bankers to prevent this from happening again. Fund jobs that will create a green economy and wean us off oil and nuclear power.
This is a time for bravery by our elected officials. I call upon them to actually
govern for a change. Set aside partisan differences and get our country back on the right track. We'll do our part in the churches. We'll teach love and forgiveness and humility and honesty and all the good traits necessary for humans to be humane. But to truly end the cycle of violence we must have a government that knows when to say "enough's enough."
