How ironic that at around the time the British politician who uttered the infamous words, "There is no such thing as society, there are only individuals", is being laid to rest, a profound demonstration of social strength occurs while bombs go off in Boston. After the initial shock, people didn't run away, instead they ran directly towards the dead and injured, doing whatever they could to assist or just comfort. This is what communities do: they bond; they unite at times of trauma or tragedy.
Yet again we have seen the end result of twisted minds - the twisted, bloodied bodies of innocent people. As yet it is too early to say who is responsible for the carnage but much media conjecture is doing the rounds. Al-Qaeda perhaps? Frankly the garbage bin bombs that were exploded along the finishing route of the Boston Marathon are too crude and small for that particular terrorist organisation - Al-Qaeda does things on a grander scale. Though its mere speculation, this looks like an act of domestic terrorism. The question is why.
Perhaps the day itself may give a clue. Patriots' Day is a civic holiday in Boston in commemoration of the anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775. Paul Revere's famous ride ("The red coats are coming") is reenacted as part of the celebration. It is also a day revered (no pun intended) by the U.S gun lobby as being symbolic of individual rights and the need to uphold the 2nd amendment. Could this be a 21st century rerun of Timothy McVeigh, who bombed Oklahoma City on the anniversary of Paul Revere's ride in 1995 as an act of violent protest against government "interference" in individual rights such as bearing arms? We will have to wait until all the evidence is in but if so this will further divide the nation along very stark socio-political lines. Time will tell.