"A heart full of sorrow…"
“I hope you know that people all over this country are thinking about you and asking God to provide comfort for all who have been affected. It’s impossible to make sense of such violence and suffering. Those whose lives were taken did nothing to deserve their fate. They were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. Now they are gone, and they leave behind grieving families and grieving classmates and a grieving nation.”
I read this quote from George W. Bush today. He was speaking in regards to the utterly horrific tragedy that befell Virginia Tech University yesterday. I find it to be an interesting choice of words from the same man who leads a nation that spends billions upon billions of dollars every single week on a war being waged for, in my opinion, purely “political” reasons. I am curious to know if Mr. Bush would use the same words to show respect, comfort and encouragement to the countless Iraqi people who have lost fathers, mothers, husbands, wives, children, friends, grandparents, brothers, sisters and cousins in the despicable bloodshed in the Middle East.
Am I missing something? Did those that have died senselessly in Iraq do something to deserve their fate? Is it possible to make sense of such violence and suffering? I am utterly sickened by Mr. Bush’s hypocrisy. It is, in fact, enraging.
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All seriousness aside (but not forgotten), I find music to be one of the most inspiring encouragers in my life. Nothing excites me more than a new and fantastic record. This past weekend I discovered a classic: “The Colour of Spring” by Talk Talk. I have been listening to it incessantly, and the lead song, “Happiness Is Easy,” is easily the sexiest song, instrumentally speaking, that I’ve heard since Simply Red released “Sunrise” in 2003. If you haven’t had a chance to hear this, do so now. It was originally released in 1986, so you may have a difficult time tracking it down unless you’re ordering online.
In addition to a new record, I’ve also discovered a new-to-me television program. From HBO, the company that brought such classics as Sex and the City and Rome, came Weeds. Mary-Louise Parker plays a suburban wife who suddenly finds herself a widow and mere inches away from poverty. In desperation, she becomes the neighbourhood’s friendly marijuana dealer, with customers from husbands and wives to city councillors and teachers. If you don’t feel like renting it, you could always do some more online shopping.
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5 Comments
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What do you mean? I’m not sure how this correlates…
Hi Keira - Steven’s mom here. You make an interesting observation about Bush. He has a very different world view - but I wouldn’t call what he said hypocracy. One is war. The other is murder. I’m not defending him or the war I’m just saying I think that may be the difference. If he believes the war is justified then that is how he can do one and say the other. Of course in war many innocent lives are lost too. I believe he was sincere yesterday. I also think he may be sincerely wrong about the war - although he may have believed there was just cause in the beginning.
I think of you every time I see a certain cookie tin in our cupboard. I think I can smell the cookies.
Kathy
Awww hi Mrs. Klassen! I’d love to come and bake cookies for you and Lando again sometime!
It’s funny with a topic such as the one I just wrote because everyone has a different opinion and a different take on it. Perhaps Mr. Bush has his reasons for being in Iraq, whether they be noble or not I don’t know. I also can’t purport to understand what he believes or doesn’t belief. However, I subscribe to the conspiracy theory when the government is concerned, particularly the U.S. government. We all have our own takes on the situation. Myself, though I absolutely support our troops, believe that the Canadian Army is in Afghanistan by proxy.
I don’t doubt Mr. Bush’s sincerity in the words he spoke to those grieving in Virginia. And true, like I said, I’m sure he has (what he believes to be) legitimate reason for being in Iraq. I just don’t understand how he can separate the two. Both are unjustified and unnecessary. The President offers heartfelt mourning over the 30-something victims at Virginia Tech but seemingly fails to recognize that hundreds of equally innocent lives are lost in the Middle East every single day.
I can understand how it’d be easy for the citizens to disregard the daily tragedies in Iraq because it’s often impossible to comprehend what isn’t “hitting close to home” - it’s just logistics. What I am getting at, at the base of this and all politics aside, is how anyone (and particularly the American government) can separate the two events at their core. Both are senseless mass murders.
Yes - how can it be separated? I hear you.
Yikes - you are still calling me Mrs. Klassen - Kathy please.
I think primarily those who wage war genuinely believe that they are doing the right thing, and that the world will be a better place because of it. But I think killing innocents in war is just as deplorable as cold blooded murder. At least in the old days, soldiers had some sort of honour or rules of engagement and would actively attempt to keep innocents out of harms way. Nowadays they just get smart bombs dropped on their heads and are reduced to nothing more than a few morning statistics in a manila envelope. It’s really quite sad.