Thursday, June 11, 2009

Tragedy


I was stunned to hear on the news about the shooting at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial and Museum. A guard died at the hands of an 88-year-old white supremacist.

The alleged shooter denied that the Holocaust ever occurred. His writings revealed a lifetime of seething anger against Jews and African-Americans.

When I visited the Museum in April, I felt that it was a sacred place. I felt that it was a place where commemoration, responsibility, reckoning and understanding came together.

It is hard to reconcile what happened yesterday with what the Museum represents: "A place of deep sadness and a sanctuary of bright hope" (President Clinton). I don't understand the motivation to hate to the point of killing. I don't know what was in the mind of this man. All I can do is send a prayer for the family of the victim, pray to let go of anger against the shooter, and leave the rest up to my Higher Power.

21 comments:

  1. My husband was nearby when it happened and got stuck in gridlock traffic so he missed his flight home. He tested me from his rental car saying something about there being a shooting at a museum and not knowing what was going on.

    Too awful. What a hateful man.

    ReplyDelete
  2. It is nothing short of terrorism on our own soil...

    ReplyDelete
  3. Amen, Syd. It's sad to think that this man carried so much hatred in his spirit for 88 years. How very tragic for those who received his hatred.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Unfortunaly there are way too many nut cases in the world that mean harm to some society of people.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I am shocked as well. What a horrific tragedy. CNN interviewed the guard's son. He looked like he was about 10. Poor thing, it broke my heart to see him. I feel for his entire family.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Von Brunn has described himself as a victim of a court system controlled by Jews and blacks."

    He has been arrested before. I fear for people who has read his book and website and hope that anyone will follow this MANS terror. Their is just to much anger in this world..

    ReplyDelete
  7. when i read about this yesterday, i thought of you and the post you did on your trip there. i was grateful you weren't there yesterday.
    what is going on in this world, why are more people not working on themselves instead of trying to control the rest of the world.
    i am glad to stand in my own truth today, with someone like you. thanks for posting about this issue. i hope you feel some peace inside your heart tonight. i lit a candle for his family yesterday.

    ReplyDelete
  8. It really is terrible that happened. It's so amazing how much evil there is in the world...

    ReplyDelete
  9. How sad.

    There was a good article in the Wash Post today about Security Officers, which ended by saying the next time we are slowed or inconvenienced by an officer doing their job, instead of being annoyed, take a moment to say thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  10. True tragic terrorism on our own soil...plain and simple.

    A tragedy!

    ReplyDelete
  11. The guard was just a young man with a family trying to make a living. Such a shame. Unfortunately it could happen anywhere nowadays. No one is really safe, right here in America.

    ReplyDelete
  12. To have that much hatred when you are that old..that's a lot of hatred in your soul to take another life.
    To take someone away from their family.
    Shocking.

    ReplyDelete
  13. How sickeningly horrible. I only just found out about this.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Ditto Syd.

    I share your reaction to this horrific event.

    Human nature can be quite perverse.....and that's putting it mildly.

    PG

    ReplyDelete
  15. The desecration of this holy place is heartbreaking. The shooter was so broken and in such a very dark place. I pray for the family of the guard and all those present. I wish peace upon this place from now on.

    ReplyDelete
  16. I was saddened at this as well. Unfortunately the supremacists are up in arms, literally. This is terrorism plain and simple. I think it is actually very telling that it happened where it did. He just made the greatest statement he could against what he carried out.

    ReplyDelete
  17. I aint been watching the news for quite a while now, all of it so depressing.
    People who carry all this hate and venom for there fellow humans sometimes I think so many would benefit with a God in there life

    ReplyDelete
  18. The killing of the guard at the Holocaust Museum by a white supremist was an enormous sorrow to me. It seems that everyday in the news is an item of enormous sorrow and not much more I can do to change anything but keep on changing myself, to let go and let god -- to do the next right thing. I also feel sorrow that this particular national sanctuary was so horribly violated by a person so sick with rage and hatred. My prayers go out to all.

    ReplyDelete
  19. I have seen hatred in myself and others - it is an evil that is hard to understand and probably should be respected for the awful damage it can do.

    Blessings and aloha...

    ReplyDelete
  20. I thought immediately of you when I heard the news. Selfishly, I'm glad that you are safe. I had not even known about the museum prior to your post.

    ReplyDelete
  21. That was a terrorist act. Why isn't it being referred to as such?

    Humans are not born hating, that has to be learned. What parent could teach that much hate?

    ReplyDelete

Let me know what you think. I like reading what you have to say.