Brutal Senselessness That Traumatized Many

It never ceases to amaze me that in the thick of our daily trials and tribulations, there is always some horrific event that shatters our world and communities. In the interim of trauma, suffering and healing, how we approach and embrace life is forever changed.

What happened in Aurora, Colorado two nights ago during the premier of “The Dark Knight Rises,” cannot be justified one iota! A 24-year-old man went on a shooting rampage, declaring that he was the character “The Joker” portrayed in the movie. There were innocent people bringing their families to see a movie for goodness sakes and many who would never walk out of that theater again.

I listened to some doctors on TV, who are giving the shooter (and I am intentionally not mentioning his name) a label for his behavior! What? I think this is a problem! When people do horrific and evil things like this, they are “EVIL.” Yes, I do believe that some things we deal with in life can make us snap and behave in an inappropriate, depressing or dehumanizing manner at some point. However, sometimes I also feel that when people are given labels describing certain patterns of their behavior, this gives them the green light to act the way they do or to be as brutal and insulting to others, all due to that “label” an expert gives to them.

Let us pray (and yes I did say PRAY) for God to grant strength and peace to every victim, directly and indirectly targeted and affected by this mass murderer. The bullets that sprayed from the assault weapon this guy brought into the theater did not care whether the victim was a Democrat or Republican, Christian or Agnostic, Anglo-Saxon or Biracial, rich or poor, young or old.

It seems rather obvious, that the damage this assassin inflicted on so many innocent lives was premeditated, because he also had his apartment methodically booby-trapped to wipe out law enforcement and possibly other residents in his apartment building. Evil will always be prevalent, but that does not make it acceptable to shatter thousands of lives and livelihoods regardless of where, when or why!