I feel sad for the boys, young men, and their families. Ten, eleven, maybe more. Even an adopted son, as we found out once the
jury went into deliberation.
I feel sad that an institution thought that reputation
– of coaches, a team, a place of learning – was more important than helping the
next victim or a very troubled adult.
I feel sad that, on the same day, a high-priest, a
cardinal’s aide, was found guilty of
child endangerment – “imperiling children by helping cover up sexual abuse”,
the paper said.
Last night, a friend poised the
question on Facebook: “What does massacre mean?”
This was a questioning of the repeated,
worn use of the term “ongoing massacre” for the events in Syria. He noted the tens of thousands killed around
the world each month from everything ranging from conflict to alcohol-related deaths.
I responded that “It saddens me to
think that a human life seems to hold little value for too many.”
His ending line still haunts me this sunny
morning:
Words not only
define us they determine our ability to think, care and react - or become
immune.
Immunity to the violence, whether caused directly by
the hands of men, or indirectly from our unwillingness to act. Butchery caused by war, hatred, greed, malnutrition
or water-borne disease. Even killing in
the “name of God”.
Do the details or reasons matter? There is suffering regardless of the means by
which death or abuse is inflicted. We
are no longer surprised by what we read about in the news. Some even anticipate in some perverse way the
headlines that shock. Imperviousness
characterizes our souls, our consciences.
I know that violence has been a curse
of the human race for a very long time, at
least since we first transitioned from our nomadic ways to the first
settlements as we domesticated other animals and the earliest crops.
Domesticate.
Interesting, that we perhaps have done better taming livestock and companion
animals than ourselves.
Perhaps I am sad
because, despite all of our wisdom, extraordinary technological advances, and self-proclamations
that we are “above” savages and the other animals of the kingdom due to our
superior mental abilities and capacity for empathy, we are numb to the violence that
surrounds us. And too many of us still retain
the capacity to be barbarous.
