Prayers and Praise at OSU

There was an attack on the main campus of The Ohio State University, somewhat reminiscent of the Nice attack earlier this year.   A man drove into a crowd and then proceeded to attack individuals in a random manner until he was fatally shot by a police officer.  So far there have been no fatalities, save for the attacker.  From all accounts, the students and faculty and security forces all responded wonderfully, which is in part why there were no fatalities or worse carnage.  Nonetheless, several lives have been shattered and we’ve been reminded once again of just how much terrorism has changed our nation.  After all, the praise going out to all concerned revolves around the extensive training and practice that not only law enforcement, but faculty, administrators and students all receive now in preparation for mass killings or terrorist attacks.  In the day it was drills in case of a nuclear strike.  Now it’s attacks by our fellow students, next door neighbors, or terrorists.

Nonetheless, the training apparently yielded fruit and the result is a story of several wounded, even seriously, but so far no fatalities. Again, apart from the attacker.  May God have mercy on his twisted soul, and bring peace and comfort to all who were impacted.  As one whose sons either attend or plan to attend OSU, if not on the main campus right now, then through the many branches, I must say this is still too close for comfort.  A reminder that our current strategy of accepting the inevitability of terrorism and similar attacks as long as it’s someone else will eventually fall apart. After all, as the wise man said, we’re all someone else to somebody.