If you tolerate this...

[Tommy BOO]

...then your children will be next.

Did you respect the victims of the Madrid bomb strike with a three minute silence today at 11am in the UK? And in other countries? It was strongly advised to have a quiet moment today all over Europe. I'm slightly surprised that no one has even mentioned the whole incident here yet!
The whole Finland stopped today at 1pm (+2GMT)
Everyone at my work stopped working and stood up to pay their respects to the victims of the terror strike - I looked out the window and the traffic had stopped as well. Quite impressive! Flags everywhere were lowered at half mast, it was quite an emotional moment.

200 innocent people dead, and hundreds and hundreds injured, in a coward terror strike - that's shocking. I have some friends who live in Spain (not in Madrid though) and fortunately they're OK.
Usually we tend to think that anything like that can't happen where we live - USA and Israel and Iraq are so far away from England and Finland and Sweden and wherever we all live... but Spain isn't. The bomb strike in a Finnish shopping center a year and half ago got me thinking that there are no safe places in this world anymore. That day I decided that something has to be done and I will be a part of it... somehow. I still don't know how.

When I think of the tragic incident in Madrid, I keep wondering why? Why did someone have to do it, what can drive a human being to kill other people in such a coward and terrible way? 200 innocent people died, people who had nothing to do with any war. It could have happened anywhere. It was a coward strike against the whole civilised world, not only against Spain.
I feel terribly sorry for the Spanish people, especially for those who lost family members and friends. If the whole civilised world doesn't unite against those barbarians, the battle will be lost. Some people still don't seem to care, but they don't obviously realise how big the threat already is. It's just a matter of time when there's another big bomb strike... Maybe in London or Paris, or Brussels or Helsinki... or in your neighbourhood, who knows? It's quite a scary thought, isn't it?
I've felt sad, angry, depressed and sorry since I heard the news. But I haven't lost the hope and my faith in good people.

This is World War 3.
Kind of.


What should we all do then? I have no idea!
But think about the possible reasons for those terror strikes - the strikes against USA were probably planned by pissed off extremists who didn't like that the Americans steal all their resources (oil, natural gas, etc etc)
I'm not trying to defend the terrorists in any way of course, what they do is terribly wrong... but I don't think that anyone could be so evil and twisted to kill hundreds of innocent people just for "fun". It's true that USA and European countries don't always treat the poor countries in Africa and Middle East and everywhere in the world fairly. Maybe the terrorists think that the violence is the only answer. Looks like the human race will never learn. In a hundred years we've all killed each other and the whole planet.
It's very difficult to make any big changes, but everyone can do something small to make this world a better place to live. Stop buying those bananas and coffee from all those big companies who don't give a fuck about people's human rights in their home countries, for example.

I'm not trying to be the new Jesus or anything, and I don't want to sound too hypocritical here - usually I buy the cheaper products by the companies that exploit the poor countries as well, just because they're cheaper, although it would be better to buy only fair trade products. But the problem is that they're much more expensive...

Anyway, I think this might even make some sense, I don't know - it still doesn't justify the murder of 200 people in Madrid though, or any other terror strikes.

Discuss.


_________________
"Tommy Boo has played a pivotal role in my life. I've looked up to him since I was a kid and he has inspired every note of music I have ever written. The man is a fucking genius" -BC

[Setareh Juventina]

World War 3? Slightly overdramatic wouldn't you say?

Anyway, I only found out around 3 o'clock that this silence thing had occurred and no one around me knew either (we were in a meeting).

Can't say I feel more sorry for people in Spain than countries far away, I know the majority of humans do feel more 'connected' to people close to them but that's just not me.
As for being scared...what's the point...sure, I'm going to Italy in 9 days and Italy did support the US in the war so maybe I should be worried but that's pointless, I can't put off Italy forever because of fear.

Love and Peace
_________________
Man is the only animal clever enough to build The Empire State Building and stupid enough to jump from it.

[Tommy BOO]

Argh. I hate it when people try to read things between lines.
OK, you understood some things in a bit different way... Let me explain.
I don't think that calling this World War 3 is overdramatic. Yes, I know it sounds quite bad, and it's not actually a war in its real meaning. This war is different to all the other wars before. The enemy is everywhere and it strikes when we least expect it. Maybe worldwide civil war sounds better... although that's not the perfect name either! Maybe we should just stick to "War against Terrorism", that's how George W Bush likes to call it...
I didn't of course mean that I feel any more sorry for people in Spain than the victims of terror strikes in other countries. This is just the latest big terror strike and I thought I would bring this subject up.

And about being scared of terrorism... It is quite scary, but I certainly wouldn't let it change my life in any way! If people in big cities escape and move to the "safe" countryside (or something similar), that would be a victory for the terrorists. That's what they want, we can't let that happen.
There's not much we can do I'm afraid, but even the smallest things help the cause.

I'm against the war in Iraq (I don't think that violence is the right solution) but there's something that worries me about the election result in Spain. It's worrying that the Al Quaida's intervention has probably changed the election result and put in a regime which has publicly stated its policies are to withdraw from Iraq etc, instead of one which supported Bush&Blair etc - that's just what Al Quaida want! What greater encouragement can the terrorists be given?

Stand up, stand up and fight.

(god I love that song)
_________________
"Tommy Boo has played a pivotal role in my life. I've looked up to him since I was a kid and he has inspired every note of music I have ever written. The man is a fucking genius" -BC

[Tommy BOO]

What I'm trying to say is that this (Spain withdrawing their troops from Iraq) has been a clear demonstration to Al Quaida that their terrorism is working, which has awful consequenses for the rest of the democratic world. Under any other circumstances this would have been great news of course, but this is kind of a symbolic victory for the terrorists.

BUT... on the other hand, if Spain removes its troops from Iraq and the terrorists leave Spain alone, who has 'won'? I guess this is too complicated, even for my relatively big head.

Here's are two interesting links, please check them out.
www.fairtrade.org.uk
www.globalissues.org


_________________
"Tommy Boo has played a pivotal role in my life. I've looked up to him since I was a kid and he has inspired every note of music I have ever written. The man is a fucking genius" -BC

[Setareh Juventina]

I wasn't trying to read meaning between the lines, I just did anyway. Internet communication and exhaustion...what can I say, not the best circumstances for functioning communication.

Yeah, "War against terrorism", appalling, and that's part of my whole problem with calling terrorist attacks for war, W does but what about his own terrorism.
Also, the inflation in the term terrorism is annoying, it's so overused.

Though I think it's stupid voting simply as a result of a tragedy I can't say I mind a government change in Spain. L&P
_________________
Man is the only animal clever enough to build The Empire State Building and stupid enough to jump from it.

[Tommy BOO]

Well, 90% of Spanish people were AGAINST the war in Iraq, so this is kind of a relief for them. But that makes the terror strikes against normal Spanish people even more 'unjustified' (well, terror strikes are ALWAYS unjustified, but you know what I mean) and terrible.
I don't even think that that kind of terror strikes are very effective. Sure, a lot of people die, but that only creates more world chaos and anger against the terrorists... but maybe that's exactly what they want?
_________________
"Tommy Boo has played a pivotal role in my life. I've looked up to him since I was a kid and he has inspired every note of music I have ever written. The man is a fucking genius" -BC

[John Mc]

It is scary to think that the bombs probably influenced the results of the Spanish election. But I don't think it was helpful of the Spanish Prime Minister elect to come out, before he's even in office, and state that he's going to remove Spanish Troops from Iraq by July unless the UN gets a more active role, surely this can be perceived as a PR victory for the terrorists. I fear the terrorism problem is going to be around for as long as I live, the differences between the two sides in the "war" are such that they're never going to be able to sit around a table and reach a compromise. What is the stated aim of Al Queda? Is it just against everything America and its allies stand for or does it have specific grievances?

Do people think the world is a more dangerous place now than it was, say 10 years ago. I read an article a while back which was talking about the Cold War years and it said that people look back on the time through rose tinted glasses because main land America never got bombed and the "threat" from Russia just fizzled out in the end.

[Dave w.]

[John Mc]

It's odd seeing the two main parties in Spain having differing opinions on the situation in Iraq when in the UK both the Conservative and Labour party were firmly behind the war. In the past you might have expected the Conservatives to be in favour of the war and Labour to offer an alternative but thats not the case anymore. If Spain pulls its troops out of Iraq does that send a message to the terrorists that they can influence election and world politics by planting a few bombs and scaring people? But if Spain doesn't pull its troops out and keep them there for the sake of showing a united front against the terrorists, when the Spanish people are against them being there then thats wrong too.

Like Tommy says the long term solution is for the US to sort out its foreign policy but that will take years to implement and show results. It will be interesting to see what happens if Kerry is elected over there.

I'm not sure what to think anymore, its such a complex situation that there's a temptation to think there's nothing you can do about it and not bother reading newspapers etc.

[Dave w.]

[che]

al qaeda does not exist.
the cia wanted a SPECTRE to do battle with.
cos bond did.