Lasts and Firsts

It's the last day of the worst class ever and the first day of the rest of my life!

I'm actually sitting in that class right now.  We're using the Boston Marathon bombing as a chance to pull together everything we've "learned" throughout the semester in sociology, history, and theology.  The problem is that we haven't actually had any history after Westphalia, sociology that assumes everyone in the room is the same and shares the same opinions of the world, and no theology whatsoever.  Doesn't exactly make for positive education.  It's pretty hard to synthesize information you never were given or taught how to use.

Also, I'm tired of talking about the bombing.  I understand people are hurting, but to me the city's response points to how privileged we are.  We have no framework in which to process violence like this because we are fortunate enough to live in a country where this isn't normal, daily life.  I don't want to undermine the value of the lost lives, but comparing 3-4 deaths with the wars going on in the rest of the world, or with the hundreds of lives lost in the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, or with the thousands lost in the events of September 11th, 2001...there is no comparison.  We live in a society where there are no international wars on our doorsteps.  We don't live in fear for our lives every day.  I don't go to sleep at night wondering if I'm going to wake up to someone raping me.  Or cutting my arms off.  That is privilege to many other people.  So while the events of the marathon are sad, and people should grieve if they need to, we can't assume that everyone is else is also experiencing events in the same way.

Which you'd know if you were an effective sociologist, theologian, or historian.  Alas...