It’s been quite a ride this parenting thing. It’s amazing to watch as they pick up new skills. The ability to smile, the ability to hold their own bottle. Our three month old just found his feet and his tongue. About one year ago, my 7 month old son discovered something new in the house though it had always been there. He discovered the television. He had seen it before, but only when positioned just so and with Baby Einstein on it. Never with the television shows aimed at the general audience.
If it was a few hours earlier, he would have seen the Red Sox hit a game winning double and Fenway park rock out “Dirty Water” by the Shandells. Unfortunately, it was the news covering the Boston Marathon Bombings. I’m sure he had no clue what he was watching and he’s already forgotten it. I haven’t.
A week later we had to drive to Children’s Hospital for the most minor of surgeries. We had the earliest appointment which had us up at 4AM. Normally, I wouldn’t have checked television or the internet, but for reason I did. The news was reporting that the Boston bombers were in a chase throwing bombs out their car. We didn’t know if the hospital would keep our appointment, but we went in anyway as if it was a typical day. The entire region got shut down for most of the day while the search for the Bomber went on in Watertown, the town where I got my first driver’s license. We weren’t allowed to leave the hospital for hours. At some point, they took pity on us and let us get back to our dog, but only after the police conducted a thorough search of our car.
I’m sure there are hundreds, maybe thousands affected by the bombings that wish they had such stories that barely can be described as inconvenient. Nonetheless that’s my story.
It’s hard to imagine a bright side from such a tragedy. However, I think tragedy brings out the best in people. It galvanized not just Boston, but all of New England. The manager of the Boston Red Sox gives credit to it helping them turn a last place team to World Series Champions. I have to watch this video every few weeks to remind myself that it really happened:
Even if you hate sports and the Red Sox the video is worth watching.
Today, thousands of people will run the Boston Marathon. It has always received some national coverage, but it has never been what it will be today. Every television station will cover it. Every newspaper will write about it. This blogger has written about it. As President Obama said last year at this time, “the world will return to this great American city to run harder than ever and to cheer even louder for the 118th Boston Marathon.”
Though I no longer live as close to the city as I used to, Boston you’re my home.
The police searched your car? Did they have a warrant or probable cause tou committed a crime? I would’ve told them to kiss my @$$.
They were doing us a favor by allowing us out of the hospital. I suppose I could have declined to have my car searched if I wanted to be forced to stay. They weren’t singling anyone out, everyone was treated the same. Telling them to “kiss my @$$” on that day would have probably given them the probable cause for a full body cavity search.
I don’t have too many rules, but here’s one I always follow, “When people are blowing up your city, you do whatever you can to help. If the best help you can provide is getting out of the way of the professionals looking to stop it, so be it.”
There are times and places to fight for privacy rights. It was neither the time nor the place, and I had nothing to hide.
They were doing you a favor by letting you out of their captivity?
There is nothing wrong with voluntarily trying to help out, but from what I read, I got the sense that citizens were not trying to voluntarily help out, but rather they were intiminated by martial law. I saw photos posted online of completely empty streets. I can understand very sparsely populated streets because people are trying to help the police solve an investigation, but completely empty?!?! They were empty from fear of the police.
Even in your response you mentioned “Telling them to “kiss my @$$” on that day would have probably given them the probable cause for a full body cavity search.” No, it would not. Exercising your 1st Amendment rights does not automatically mean you waive your 4th Amendment rights. However, you thinking it would is probably evidence of you being intiminated by government thugs. It’s time for the citizens to stop rolling over taking their crap.
People in Boston these days need to learn from their Boston ancestors (circa December 16, 1773).
There was no intimidation, after all most of the law was in Watertown looking for the suspect. People stayed in their homes voluntarily. The streets were empty, but in the same way they are empty at 3AM, nothing is open, no one is conducting business, why go outside? (The exception is obviously essential personal like nurses, doctors, military on duty etc.) Add that it is potentially dangerous and that the governor asked people to stay inside, and it is an easy call.
The intimidation thing sounds like something that Sean Hannity or similar show would make up. He could have found 3 or 4 people to support it because they wanted 15 minutes of fame.
The only reason to leave the house (unless contributing the goal of the suspect) or telling them to “kiss my @$$” is just be a grade-A jerk to the people who are trying to save lives.
I can’t even communicate how disrespectful it is to use the phrase “being intiminated [intimidated?] by government thugs” when referring to the heroes who were out there trading gun fire with a terrorist.
Yes, it was martial law. Witnesses testified they were detained by the national guard for attempting to go to the pharmacy. People’s homes were invaded. The police force was militarized with tanks in the streets. This is not what our veterans have their lives for and it’s a disgrace that people in Boston rolled over like helpless sheep.
It’s one thing to stay inside our of harms way when the police are exchanging gunfire a few blocks down, but it’s totally another matter when an entire city is on lock down.
You make it sound like the National Guard used it as an excuse to push around some citizens or invade people’s houses for fun. If they invaded a house and found a meth lab, none of it would have been submittable as evidence anyway. So there was nothing to gain by doing it except for trying to protect people’s safety.
They didn’t know where the terrorist was. In fact, he was outside of the area that they thought. So yes, shut down multiple cities. It is much easier to search when everyone is sheltered in place than when everyone is moving around.
As a military family, I know quite a few veterans and they 100% support the actions taken given the circumstances. If it were your average Monday morning, of course not, but all bets are off when you are dealing with a terrorist and people’s safety.
I’m the biggest supporter of privacy there is, hence my anonymity. I’ve written about the TSA scanners in the past. I’ll be the first one to give up any and every freedom I have for a short time when it comes to saving lives. To complain about it is like suggesting it is free speech to yell “fire” in a crowded theater. Circumstances matter.
I couldn’t be more proud of how the city united to shelter in place and do their part (even if it was a small part) to help. I would be disgusted if people started to fight the National Guard. That’s exactly what the terrorists want.
People willing to trade their freedom for temporary security deserve neither and will lose both.
People trying to put others in harms way to make a senseless point deserve neither freedom or security either.