The devil made "we" do it

Jason Lim is a columnist for the Korea Times who writes thoughtful commentaries. After going through the trauma of trying to understand Eun-jung Chung’s rambling commentary yesterday, Lim's was a delight.

My only complaints about his column in yesterday's Korea Times on terrorism.

1) According to my Microsoft Word counter, he used the word “we” 53 times. I’m not saying that using “we” is wrong. Slow down and use your brain. His constant use of the word was to explain how people think...I feel like I have been drafted as an advocate of his argument.

2) This paragraph stands out among the others:

“Then we create a narrative that explains why this person (or group of persons) did what he or she did. And when we collectively believe in this narrative that we created, it becomes the truth of what happened. And that truth, often not supported by facts, will drive our decisions and actions.”

3) I don't agree with his analysis so I can't join him for the ride. I may be the only person on the planet who doesn't care why the terrorists did what they did. It is a legitimate issue for law enforcement because they want to figure out who else may be involved. But for all of the Perry Masons and Judge Judys watching at home, I'm not sure why it is relevant.

Criminals seem to have different explanations, with my favorite still being Flip Wilson’s “The Devil Made Me Do It.” If law enforcement has enough evidence to prove the accused did the crime, that’s enough for me. Lock ‘em away or execute them—they can figure out their own root causes while they are behind bars. They can explain the “why” to their mothers or sweethearts.

4) I'm going against the tide, I know. The idea that psychopathic and crazy people do psychopathic and crazy things for a reason other than that they are psychopathic and crazy requires a rational explanation. I will guess those are the people Lim is speaking on behalf of.

In president Obama's first statement about the bombing. he said: "We'll find out who did this, we'll find out why they did this." Okay, so the "we" here is law enforcement, and they have a specific mission. For journalists: "Why did they do it? Stay tuned to find out, that and more."

Haven't these particular psychopaths already had enough face time? I have heard enough on the radio about the losers that I can explain why I am not interested in those losers.

I'm just an unsophisticated, lock-em-up and melt-the-key kinda guy. The Boston Bombers had their days in the media. Time for the rule of law and law enforcement to do their thing, hopefully with a speedy and proper execution to follow.

CJL

Disclaimers:

1) First prize for the person who correctly counts the number of times I used “we” to talk about what people believe.
2) I certainly understand law enforcement wanting to understand the criminal mind, as part of the investigation. But "why" is fodder for the chattering class of society.

"Yoegi Anjuseyo!"

* I have a short reflection in today's Korea Times about an encounter with an unfriendly looking Korean man on the subway. It was a reminder not to be too quick in judging people in Korea. 09-13-2011 16:47 'Yeogi Anjeuseyo!' By Casey Lartigue Jr. The recent incident in which an American English teacher bullied an elderly Korean man and other passengers on the bus reminded me of a more pleasing incident from years ago. I was on the subway, taking the train outside of Seoul for a work assignment. I have the habit of standing on the subway to strategically position myself near the doors in case my stop magically appears. On that particular day, there was a Korean man STARING at me. Not just looking at me, but intensely staring at me. He had an incredible frown on his face. Not just for one stop, but for several stops the guy just kept staring at me. If I had known more Korean then I would have been able to curse him ...

Michael Breen discussion at 10 Magazine

Yesterday I attended a discussion with writer Michael Breen, hosted by Barry Welsh. Very often, when I attend a speech or discussion about a topic I know a lot about, I often think about ways the speaker/facilitator/discussant could have done better. But I didn't feel that way about Breen, it was one of those times that I really felt like I had a lot to learn and should listen more than talk. He's been in Korea for three decades, working as a reporter, commentator, communications specialist. He reminds me of Andrei Lankov in that his analysis seems to be based on observation of how things work rather than trying to get the world to fit his biases. I don't know him, so his friends may say he is a raging ideologue, but that's not the impression I had yesterday and based on his writings. Michael Breen (L) and Casey Lartigue I first read his book The Koreans about a decade ago. It was a delightful read, that was both warm to Koreans but also critical at times. Yes...

2020-11-26 My basketball story

This photo was uploaded today by my aunt Annette. This was back in the day, when 1) I had a head full of hair and 2) played basketball a lot. That first year of playing organized basketball, I focused on playing defense. It seemed that everyone wanted to shoot the ball, so I passed the ball and played defense. I probably led the league in steals, rebounds and blocked shots. I enjoyed taking on the best player from the other team, I felt like I would get better, quickly. The second year, I was a different player. I will never forget the first game that second year--we lost 29 to 26, I scored 18 points. I probably led the universe in scoring that second year, although we didn't win much. One thing I learned from that experience is that one great player 9 (at least in his own mind) can't beat a team. An eye injury ended my pro career before it began, to this day I still have floaters in my eyes because of the injury. I started wearing glasses, but the problem never went away. On t...

Park Jin welcoming remarks to FSI (and Casey Lartigue)

National Assembly member Park Jin makes the welcoming remarks at FSI's conference featuring North Korean diplomats. Park Jin | Greeting message to FSI and Casey Lartigue mention - YouTube

Get rid of that watermelon!

Part 1: When I was a youngster I used to collect Confederate money, posters and photographs with caricatures of blacks, and "No blacks allowed signs." I loved the money because it was a reminder of how far the sorry Confederacy had fallen. I had one poster of a dark-skinned black boy munching on a watermelon. I would look at that small poster and wonder, "What in the world is wrong with anyone wanting to eat watermelon?" Yes, white people, I'm talking to you. Your parents, grandparents, and other ancestors who thought making fun of blacks for eating watermelon were crazy ! Even people who say that nothing has changed in race relations must acknowledge that the many stereotypes of blacks are no longer prevalent. But then, there are also some ready to remind us of days-gone-by by debunking stuff that doesn't need to be debunked today. According to the Washington Post: The sound you just heard was yet another racial stereotype going kersplat ! Some ...

The Casey Lartigue Show!

Search This Blog