All day I have been following the news and trying to reconcile with myself why I am so much more upset about this bombing than I was with Madrid or Bali or even in some ways than the tsunami (although that one probably has to do more with natural disaster versus people killing other people). Is it because I know people from Britain? Is it because we speak the same language? Is it because of the geographical proximity? Is it because of some horrible unspeakable subconscious racial thing about westerners and all that? I like to think of myself as enlightened and compassionate and not hung up on any us and them kind of mentality - we're all people in the world and all that. But then why do some tragedies upset me more than others?

I also have been filled all day with this utter frustration with government and the useless beaurocratic means taken to make us feel safer. They talk and talk about the global war on terror and reforming the intelligence structure and then soemthing happens and it's all like "Oh - didn't see that coming". Well - why not? It's like the whole airport security thing where we are given the idea that all this hassle means we must be safer, but really it doesn't mean anything. It's like the focus is so narrow and short sighted that it assumes there's going to be another attack on New York with planes when obviously the target and method keeps evolving. |