Boston Marathon: The Overtime Run

As I watched the legions of uniformed militia/police in the chase, I thought of my six year old son, PJ’s video games, how the faces are obscured and the armor distorts the human shapes. I also thought what must be going through the suspect kid’s mind, the rabbit on the run. Like, “How the hell did I end up in this mess?” Kafka and Alfred Hitchcock had it all figured out long ago. Accused and under attack and you can’t restart the game. The testimony of his classmates and coaches (he was the captain of his high school wrestling team, a good student, a community volunteer), the pleas from his friends for him to give himself up, ending with a loud assertion from one of his team mates, a fellow wrestler, that “We all love you, Joe-Har, we all love you!” Heavy confrontation. I gained no extra respect for the “law enforcement” side of things. They were playing for keeps. Just following orders, you know. At least they held back on the drones.

 

Meanwhile, a madman crashed into a hotel near the Kenya/Somali border and killed 8 guests with a machine gun. Thirty five people died in a Baghdad cafe from a suicide bomb the same day. A mysterious fire and explosion killed dozens and maimed scores in West, Texas. Nobody mentioned those events for days, no questions about industrial safety or possible sabotage. Waco? April 19? My buddy Wizzie called me and vented for awhile over the overkill in the Boston case, thousands of cops chasing this kid and he was eluding them. One confused young male. They caught him, bleeding, busted in the bottom of a boat in a backyard. The bloody tarp gave him away.

I blame the older brother. One guy can sure stir up some shit. Anyway, back now to baseball, beanballs, bloody brawls, and the American way of life. A kenyan and an Ethiopian won the Boston Marathon, by the way, men’s and women’s divisions. The Marathon People will be running in London next week. Love to all. Jim