BOSTON MARATHON BOMBING

Two bombs went off near the finish line of the Boston Marathon on Monday. As of this time three people are killed along with 176 injured. Tonight 71 remain hospitalized with 24 in critical condition.

One of the dead was an eight year old boy who was in attendance with his family watching his father run the race. His mother suffered a serious head injury and his six year old sister lost a leg.

Boston hospitals are reporting they had to perform several amputations on the wounded. The injuries sustained are due to the bomb containing pellets and nails as projectiles. Some of the injured had between 10 to 40 of these objects in their bodies. Combat Veterans that were in attendance at the marathon have compared this event to an Improvised Explosion Device (IED) that they have experienced in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Boston Marathon is an annual event that captures the city as part of the Patriot's Day celebration in the state of Massachusetts that celebrated the start of the American Revolution in April 1775. The Red Sox play a rare 11AM game in order to accommodate this event. The marathon has several participants from all over the world.

The finish line, a scene of triumph and accomplishment, is now a scene of death and tragedy. It is currently an active murder scene. It might be a certain period of time before we know who perpetrated this awful event.

These are the details that are known right now.

Two observations about this event.

First, condemnation.

I condemn the person(s) who perpetrated these attacks. I have full faith in our investigative and law enforcement processes that they will bring the perpetrators to justice. A former FBI agent suggested that those involved in the attack will not receive a Miranda warning.

No, you give them Miranda. It is events like these when our ideals are tested and we answer to our better judgment.

I condemn the people who do not have their facts straight in reporting the story. I understand that in the media environment we live in you have to be the first to report the story. Especially CNN for raising that President Obama did not call it a "terrorist attack" in his statement to the White House Press Corps. Seriously...?! And the news media wonders why the general public dislikes them.

There is one thing that is lost in trying to always being first: being right. The media needs to do a better job in getting the story right so that misinformation does not infiltrate the process and cause further harm.

I condemn the fear peddlers. Alex Jones and his minions from the rocks where they crawled from with their nonsense. One infiltrated one of the hospital press conferences. Fox News regular Erik Rush for this tweet (it has been deleted, but the screen shot exists). Rep. Steve King (R-IA) for using this event to derail attempts for Comprehensive Immigration Reform.

Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) for saying on the Senate floor yesterday: "I think it’s safe to say that for many, the complacency that prevailed prior to September 11th has actually returned." What do you mean by "many" Senator? If you mean this President, he's crippled Al Qaeda's capabilities. Do you mean the American people? Should we live in constant paranoia like you do?

And of course, the Tea Party with the usual blame Obama for everything.

These people do not provide anything constructive and should be instantly marginalized as the cranks and cooks that they are.

Now, praise.

High praise to our first responders. Yesterday was the deadline for filing a federal income tax. It is our tax dollars that pays their salaries. Allow me to step on my soapbox for a second: We praise them for their courage and heroism in the response of chaotic events like the one witnessed on Monday. Let's hope that the policies we implement reflect this praise.

Finally, I close with this observation.

I remember the feeling of uncertainty after the 9/11 Attacks. Airline travel across the country halted. Major League Baseball, in the middle of the pennant races, ceased for a week. National Football League games for the upcoming Sunday were postponed. Eventually, life went on but it wasn't the same. There were new security procedures in place that took time to get adjusted to.

The first flight I took post-9/11 was in August 2002 going to Navy boot camp at Great Lakes, IL. It was a shock because I had flown as a kid and going through security was take a walk through the metal detector. As we know today, it is this complex procedure where you have to show identification and you take your shoes off and there is an expanded list of items you can't take on the plane.

In November 2001, New York held its annual New York City Marathon. There were concerns about security along the route, but the marathon went on as planned. It was a symbol of resiliency and endurance. Remember, New York had hosted 3 games in the 2001 World Series; along with President George W. Bush throwing out the ceremonial first pitch in Game 3.

Amby Burfoot, 1968 winner of the Boston Marathon, authored this piece for Runner's World and the Running Times.

This quote stood out:

This wasn’t just an attack against the Boston Marathon... It was an attack against the American public and our democratic use of the streets. We have used our public roadways for annual parades, protest marches, presidential inaugurations, marathons, and all manner of other events. The roads belong to us, and their use represents an important part of our free and democratic tradition.

I trust and believe that will not change in the future--not in Boston, not at the Boston Marathon, and not at other important public events. Yes, we must be ever-vigilant. We cannot cover our eyes and ears, and pretend violent acts don’t threaten our great institutions.

But our institutions did not become great by following a path of timidity and cowardice. And we can only hope that, when pummeled, as the Boston Marathon was today, they will rise again, stronger than ever.