Boston

My heart goes out to everyone involved in or affected by the dreadful murderous events at the Boston Marathon. I was reduced to tears watching the news as it unfolded and had to turn off the broadcast. Even today I have problems viewing or hearing about this particular news. Yet again a coward or cowards cause the harm.

Whether it's an IED hidden at the side of the road to kill, a car bomb to kill, someone with a gun in a cinema, or roaming on an island, or a gang kicking to death a defenceless vagrant; wherever you are, it's the same old story of the cowards inflicting the harm. A bomb amongst spectators, a gun when others don't have a gun, a knife when others don't have a knife, or group numbers to overwhelm the victim. It's rarely aggression on a level playing field. It's always an unbalanced equation where the perpetrator has a clear advantage. This is why we must never bend. We must also brush aside our sensibilities and do unto others that which they choose to do or try to do to us. I know that we should turn the other cheek, and that everyone should love their enemy. But when you cry while watching what should have been a happy event, you also start to understand that society needs to develop a different set of rules to deal with extremes. Whether its homeland homegrown silly reason terror, or what we tend to term international 'extremists'; the outcome is nevertheless extreme. The outcome is also not limited to geography, as history has shown that we have had our fair share of car bombs and nail bombs in the United Kingdom. Soft targets are soft, but we need to stop being soft with those who do this stuff.

Torture them by all means if it's going to help in gathering intelligence or assist our understanding of what drives them to extremes. Do not hesitate to extradite them to those countries who would like to house them in their systems and thereafter prosecute them. Stop treating them as equals, and instead begin to understand that those who engage in violence and murder, thereby relinquish their right to the systems that are in place to protect others. It's time to make sure that those who deal in violence, begin to understand that they and their families will pay big time. It's time for those who govern our countries to stop pussy footing around, and instead start fighting back hard.