Possibility of Attacks in the USA- Page 4

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 7/7/05 at 11:20pm

and they pray to a different god

nah, auggie, the god of abraham, just like the christians and the jews, save for the issac and ishmael debate. now, london's large indian population, on the other hand...

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 7/7/05 at 11:21pm

hello! Didn't you guys watch 30 Days!!

[amasis]

Posted: 7/7/05 at 11:29pm

and they pray to a different god

I think that was a quote from the article, right? Not something auggie said.

But, yeah... same god.

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 7/7/05 at 11:31pm

right you are, i take that back, and direct it instead to pitt, dammit. and auggie, you have my most profuse apologies.

[Marquise]

Posted: 7/7/05 at 11:41pm

Namo, I beg to differ. It is all about ME. It's always all about ME.
Updated On: 7/7/05 at 11:41 PM

Posted: 7/7/05 at 11:52pm

The bombings which occured earlier on the 7th, in London, remined me of how true it is that none of us ever know when our lives might be affected by such tragedy.

A few of you may have read a post on the Main Board regarding a play that played in the Brits off Broadway series recently, UNSUSPECTING SUSAN. Since the series has closed, and SUSAN has left town, I have no hestitation mentioning the dramatic point of the play.

A upper middle class matron living in the "gin and Jag belt" spends her days and nights living the village life: worrying abou the new neighbors; her lady friends, one who is adjusting to her new post divorce life as a practicing Buddhist and the other who is drinking away her life; and worrying about her son, a 30 year old with a bipolar disorder living in London with a very nice flatmate, an Egyptian. Soon after Susan returns homes from the opening performance of the Parish production of THE KILLING OF SISTER GEORGE, her world is shattered by the police at ther door. Her son, living in London, was a suicide bomber in a Jewish restaurant in London, killing himself and 4, or 5, others, incluing a 5 year old girl and a woman pregnant with her first child.

Just like that, her world came to a stop. Without her realizing what was occuring, her son allowed himself to become an instrument of death, and irreversably inflicted himself into the lives of ordinary Londoners. One would never have suspected.

While we reflect on the sad and terrible events that happened today we should never lost sight that any one of us might be affected in a similar fashion. It doesn't matter where we live, or how important, or not, our lives might seem to ourselves or others, each of us can become a victim, and even a few of us might feel the need to act as a deliverer.


None of us are above it all. We should act to not become unsuspecting Susans.



Updated On: 7/8/05 at 11:52 PM

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 7/7/05 at 11:55pm

Kudos Jose.

And it reminds me to try to think about what the view of the world looks like for the survivors of the thousands of dead Iraqui civilians too.

[Marquise]

Posted: 7/7/05 at 11:56pm

But José my name isn't Susan...

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 7/7/05 at 11:59pm

Oh and P.S. Jose, this line "how true it is that none of us ever know when our lives might be affected by such tragedy..." reminds me of something my friend the transplant nurse once said to me: Life can turn on a dime.

I try to remember that when I veg out and waste time. It keeps me motivated.

Posted: 7/8/05 at 12:04am

Growing up and generally finding something in my then life to complain about, my mother's response was very often, "your life can change in an instant."

How little I realized then how true it always is.

[etoile]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 1:51am

My mother's most affecting phrase, "None of us are promised tomorrow."

[Elphaba]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 1:54am

this is just what Bush wants, to get people scared to justify his insanity.

The possibility has ALWAYS existed that another attacked could take place

Posted: 7/8/05 at 2:00am

"Life's what happens while you make plans."

[etoile]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 2:02am

I don't think anyone is scared, just philosophical.

And as much as you may want to believe what you wrote, Elphaba, I think that's one hell of a stretch and speaks more about you than about Bush.

[SamIAm]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 9:49am

Namo, I do have to agree with you but I frankly think that is in the nature of most people to say 'there but for the grace of God go I'...and feel good that it didn't happen to them. I'm not AGREEING with the idea that you can brush it off if it didn't happen here. I DID find it interesting after 9/11 that we finally started to take seriously what had been happening in other countries for a long time. A Brit friend of mine who lives in this country now said to me after 9/11 'you are now going to have to start to think like we have thought and to get used to what we have gotten used to'. In other words, 'terrorism and uncertainty'

All of a sudden we were beating our chests like a gorilla and espousing the belief that we could not allow terrorism to exist in a civilized world. Where was this government and this people when Africa was going down the tubes from gorillas and terrorists...or the bombings and killings continued in England and Ireland because of religious wars? Where were they when splinter groups were tearing apart the fabric of middle eastern cultures or Romania and Slovenia were suffering?

Hey...that wasn't OUR problem...not on OUR soil. Yes, it's scary to live in these times. But, I don't think we do anyone a service by whipping up the fear again and telling people to hide under the covers. We have to live our lives. No police force or govt will protect us from all bogeymen, no matter how diligent they are and, yes, we are at risk...but the news channels make money off ratings and they will scare the bejesus out of you just to make a buck....so calm down...go to work...be aware of your surroundings...and live a good life. Hope for the best...and elect a political body that will address world hunger and third world status so that the terrorists have no young men and women to prey on...without hopelessness, they have no hook into the psyches of young people anymore.

It's not about war...it's about survival (food, jobs, a chance to live a fruitful life). And as much as they say it is about religion, if they are happy in the pursuit of their lives they won't be looking at the fat, happy Americans with such hungry eyes anymore.

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 10:04am

I actually agree with you SamIAm, to boil down my whole thought on the topic to a sound bite (I wrote it in the thread earlier), it's that I think:

"It makes sense to ask how does this affect me, not how is this about me?"

[SamIAm]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 10:06am

Jose, you are right that we can never know what is coming around the next corner and we need to try to live our lives in the moment. I know people who have 'cheated death' in some way and feel rejuvenated in that respect.

However, having said that, even if we don't know what is coming, we can't allow ourselves to be 'resigned' or 'defeatist' about that. There are certain things like war, poverty and global warming that NEED action and though they are very difficult problems to solve for such a diverse world of people with differing religions, cultures and values...if we DON'T solve them we will not survive.

We will either do this together or not at all. And for us as the one remaining BIG GORILLA to think that might equals right and not to be willing to listen to what others say (e.g. in the G8 conferences where everyone is tiptoeing around our inability to see and address global warming) is just ignorant.

We may be the strongest and maybe we have a flawed, but nonetheless good way of governing that allows us rights and freedom in some measure, but that doesn't make us GOD.

[SamIAm]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 10:12am

Namo, you are right. It does make sense to take the thought of a tragedy to some personal level. It is, after all, the way that we process information. Because that's all we have. But, in speaking to our 'community' self, we hope that once we have gotten past the check points of personal safety we can look outside our own walls to our neighborhood, city, country, planet...and make decisions that are good for the world.

If we did that more often we wouldn't be dumping our pollution on another country to get it out of our own hair...or gleefully using up the world's oil supply on our SUV's, right, or buying diamonds from guerillas who hack off the limbs of fellow African miners and then take the diamonds and sell them on the black market.

I feel bad about being lumped in with ugly Americans in the eyes of those who do not know us as individuals. But I must say that there are times when I am embarrassed by our behavior as a global citizen. There are also times (like during the donation period for Tsunami relief) that I am proud that we can acknowledge and respond to the needs of others.

[Broadwaygirl22]

Posted: 7/8/05 at 11:57am

My friend said that there are supposedly 25 places in Massachusetts that are targets. I don't know which ones though. Just thought I'd let those of you know who live in Massachusetts. Do you guys think we're a generally safe state?