12/9/15 Chatterbox
Betty Kaiser
Traditionally, December is the month of love, joy and peace.
It’s the time when we happily worry and fret over how we’re going to get
everything done in time for Christmas. It should not be the time when foremost
in our thinking is the safety of our loved ones in their school, shopping or
work place. That safety, however, is today’s concern, as inexplicable violence
and mass murderers seems to be erupting all around us. The light of the season
seems strangely dim.
Sometimes when I’m wallowing in the misery of this reality,
I need to step back and get some perspective. While I like to see the world
through rose colored glasses and believe that today’s killings and atrocities
are something new and have never happened before, I would be wrong. Evil is and
always has been at work amongst us.
I am old enough to remember many senseless and tragic
killings in our country. I remember where I was when President John F. Kennedy
was assassinated in Nov. 1963. My three little towhead babies were in the car
with me as we drove down Inglewood Blvd., Calif. They were oblivious to the
news but tears ran down my face as I wondered not “who” but “why.”
I remember the escalation of fear and frustration during the
official Vietnam War era of 1969-1973. It was an ugly war and I marveled at the
bravery of the war’s protestors. Then, on May 4, 1970, the unthinkable
happened. The Ohio National Guard fired on unarmed protestors at Kent State,
killing four and wounding nine others. Three years later the war officially
ended. Where was the light?
The 1980s and 1990s were filled with dozens of illogical
shootings. In 1984, in San Ysidro, Calif., an out of work security guard killed
21 and wounded 18 at a McDonald’s restaurant. In 1986, a mail carrier in
Oklahoma, walked into his post office, opened fire and killed 14 co-workers
before killing himself over a poor performance report.
About this time, a sort of pattern seemed to be emerging.
Individuals disgruntled with their jobs or perceived treatment would heavily
arm themselves and go on a killing spree. There was even a term coined for this
mentality called “going postal.”
Twenty years ago, Americans were ushered into a new killing
nightmare. Timothy McVeigh, an anti-government militant and his accomplice
Terry Nichols introduced a new level of homeland terrorism. McVeigh set off a
truck bomb outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City,
killing 168 people and injuring hundreds including children. Where was the
light?
Revenge was McVeigh and Nichols motive. Their hatred against
the way the U.S. government handled a standoff with Randy Weaver that ended
with a firefight was one of many grudges they held. In return McVeigh decided
to bomb a federal building and destroy both it and its occupants. Until Sept. 11, 2001 it was the worst
terrorist attack on U.S. soil and is the worst act of domestic terrorism in our
history.
Suddenly, multiple school shootings came into the headlines.
In 1998, Kip Kinkel, a disturbed young man, was suspended from Thurston High
School for carrying a loaded, stolen handgun. That afternoon, he shot and
killed both of his parents. The next day he returned to school wearing a trench
coat to conceal his weapons. He
fired 50 rounds, killing two and injuring 37. His fellow students eventually
restrained him and he is serving a life sentence.
In 1999, two students put Columbine High School on the map
when they opened fire at school, killing a dozen students and a teacher plus
numerous injuries to others before they killed themselves.
Just two years later on Sept. 11, 2001, our country was
introduced to global terrorism. Everyone remembers where they were when they
saw the Twin Towers taken down in a coordinated series of attacks. We remember
the ash-covered survivors running for safety. We remember the towers
collapsing. We remember the heroism of First Responders. Thousands were killed.
We were shocked to learn of an enemy dedicated to the destruction of the United
States. A fatwa or declaration of war had been issued by Osama “Who”?
And the list of horrors goes on. I think that CNN reporter
Brooke Baldwin spoke for many of us when she said, concerning the Roseburg and
San Bernardino shooting …”I’m sick of speaking the words ‘active shooter
situation.’ I’ve been covering too many of them…I’ve become too familiar with
this. It’s sadly become a routine.”
So where is the light in all this madness? That’s a good
question.
It saddens me to put out a column of remembrances like this
in an attempt at perspective because I have no answers. I can’t just pretend
that evil isn’t happening in my happy little corner of the world. The truth is,
evil doesn’t take a break. Not even for Christmas. And now, more than ever, we
must be vigilant. Now is the time to be alert, know our neighbors and put our
fears in perspective.
One answer is to look around and find pockets of light.
Random kindnesses are being practiced daily. Every-day life goes on. Good
people are at work everywhere. Law enforcement is working to protect us. Babies
are being born. Birthdays are being celebrated. Families are flourishing. The
poor are being fed. The homeless are being sheltered. We are becoming united
against the darkness.
In the Netherlands during the dark days of World War II a
church minister was trying to convince his people that God would eventually
destroy their enemies. He said, “It can take time but good will always win over
evil...For the time being I can only forecast a dark night but the dark night
will be followed by a bright dawn.”
These are dark days. But the gift of Christmas and the angel
telling us to “fear not” is just around the corner. Let us pray for and work
towards a bright dawn. Shalom.
Betty Kaiser’s Chatterbox is about people,
places, family, and other matters of the heart.
