I'll Be There For You

On this week before Christmas, I feel like my blog should be full of merriment, present and decorating ideas, and pictures of my holiday plans.  However, after the tragic massacre at Sandy Hook elementary school, I didn't feel like that was a meaningful enough use of my little piece of the Internet.

Still, I don't really know what to say.  To the families of the victims of this tragedy, I send my heartfelt wishes and prayers for the strength to get through this.  To the politicians across the country to actually do something about gun control and mental health care, I hope that you have the presence of mind to consider every side of the issue.  To the family of the gunman, Adam Lanza, I pray that you have the strength to not only take responsibility for his actions, but to weather the scorn and anger that it sure to come from many different corners.  And for all those grieving the loss of these beautiful, innocent children, just remember that you are not alone.

In the true spirit of the holiday season, we are all there for each other.

What I Do

"It's not who I am underneath, but what I do that defines me."

~ Batman Begins, Christopher Nolan

I have been thinking about this post for a while and still don't think that I have a good way of discussing my thoughts on the horrible shooting in Aurora, Colorado this past Friday.  What is there to say other than to wish love, sympathy, and healing to the victims and their families?  Because I cannot possibly begin to understand what they are going through.  So here it is, heartfelt despite its unoriginality: you all are in my thoughts and prayers.

I have been watching as nearly every news program on television procedes to report and cover this story to death (pardon the wording).  Searching for some new take on the event, I found myself considering this quote from the first of Christopher Nolan's three Batman films.  This is the exact lens through which the nation is judging the shooter, James Holmes.  He will no longer be remembered as that quite kid who liked video games, or the graduate student studying neuroscience, but as a crazy, blood thirsty shooter.  Not that I am arguing for his innocence or general goodness, but I think its tragic and fairly selfish that this is what he decided he wanted to be remembered by.  Holmes will be forever immortalized as the shooter in "the movie massacre," and his family will have to live with that everyday.

I can only hope that this event does not completely eclipse the spectacular phenomenon that is The Dark Knight Rises.  It was a brilliant movie that I would still suggest seeing.  The cast and acting are simply phenomenal; even though this is a movie about Batman, it feels more like an ensemble cast than a leading role and his supporting cast.  The action sequences are stunning, and yet there is also quite a bit of character development and plot for a "blockbuster" thriller.

To the families in Aurora, keep your chins up.  It will get better with time.  To true fans of the Nolan trilogy, do not be deterred.  To paraphrase from the film, we should not let fear rule us.

The Death of Osama Bin Ladin

Well, I'm pretty sure everyone in the United States knows by now that Osama Bin Ladin is dead. He was the leader of al Qaeda who was found to be the mastermind of the attacks on September 11th, 2001. Late last night, President Obama announced that the special U.S. security force dedicated to finding Bin Ladin had finally succeeded.

Needless to say, this is definitely a victory for the U.S. in the so called war against terror. The death of Bin Ladin has probably brought peace and closure to many families of the victims of 9/11. I know that I personally feel that (in a very eye-for-an-eye sense) justice has been served. However, I don't know how much this will really change anything. All the reading into the issue I've done has suggested that Bin Ladin didn't exactly micromanage al Qaeda, which means that it will be easier for someone to simply step into his role as leader of the group and continue their day to day operations. While I hope that his death has weakened the organization, I have a feeling that we will just have to wait and see how things play out in the next couple of weeks.

No matter what ends up happening, I think this would be a good time for all of us to remember all of the men and women serving in our armed forces and thank them for all their hard work. Without them, things might have turned out a lot differently.