“We, and all others who believe in freedom as deeply as we do, would rather die on our feet than live on our knees” Franklin Roosevelt
We live in a dangerous world, That is the sad fact. The terrible happenings in Paris on Friday the 13th last week illustrate that. We can argue all day about the hows and whys, point fingers at this or that politician and assign blame. But this is a moot point. There is no quick fix, no magic solution that will render the world a safer place. But it’s the one we have to live in for now, and we better figure out how.
I watched my worlds collide on the 13th. The space between my music and racing friends evaporated. The outpouring of emotion, raw emotion was obvious and heartfelt. The compassion people displayed was beautiful. As I expect it to be. It takes a hard hearted person to not be affected by the events in Paris. Both groups of friends converged, some outraged at the events in the concert venue, others at the fact we were racing as this was unfolding. But all in agreement over the horrors in Paris.
The problem is that some of the tweets played right into the terrorists hands. There were hundreds that expressed “We need to stop the race and stop tweeting about it” And I understand. Of course the primary focus at the minute is to worry about our friends in Paris. But my second thought is NO. If we do that we allow the terrorists to win. That’s exactly what they want. To disrupt our way of life.
Lzzy Hale As a musician who takes a different stage everyday, you forget how vulnerable you are up there. Hope the EODM guys and crew are ok
So many rock fans at Bataclan are dead,wounded or in the scariest position they’ve ever been in their lives.We just played there This is awful
The tweets from Lzzy Hale, And the blog post from Randy Blythe (Singer Lamb Of God) illustrate a point. They must use common sense. It’s not just themselves at risk, or all they have to think about. It’s the fans in the seats as well. No one likes cancelled concerts. But When you potentially have the lives of a couple thousand people in your hands, caution has to prevail. Five Finger Death Punch is in Europe now, and cancelling shows, Halestorm will be there in early 2016 and Lamb Of God just cancelled their tour.
What has this got to do with racing? I recently heard an CNN interview where the guest illustrated the dangers we face with our “soft targets” like our sports venues, concert halls and transit systems, and the need for tighter security. He pointed out that we have had attacks on our soil before and we need to be ready.
What’s the answer in North America? Should we stop all rock shows, or races? I say No. I take solace in the fact that we are Americans. And we live like Americans do. Places like Oklahoma City, New York and Boston have shown us that while we may stumble, we always get up. 9/11 did not stop our lives, we took a deep breath and pressed on. I take comfort that be it a concert hall, racetrack or wherever, I am surrounded by my American Family and while we may squabble over this and that policy or idea, when our backs are to the wall, we can stand shoulder to shoulder in defence of each other. So in the event of even tighter security, be patient, be vigilant and be thankful of those men and women who’s ultimate desire is to keep us safe at whatever the cost.
And to Lzzy, FFDP and all the rest I would say, whenever you feel safe enough to go on stage, do it. While I can’t imagine the worries from the stage, I can say as Rock fans in the crowd we have your back.
Because here’s the thing. The terrorists are cowards. They can only catch us flat footed once. We’ll be prepared the next time. Remember. United 93, our 3 brave men on the train in France, the list goes on and on.
On 9/11 I was working at SLP. I remember we met that afternoon. Terry, John, Dan, Jean and myself. The question was “what do we do now?” It was Terry who said “We are going to open the doors, and whoever wants to can come to work. We are going to build Camaros until someone tells us not to”. And that has always stuck with me, we have to keep rolling.
So go to the Concert, Race, Football game and as we head into the holiday season, enjoy all the festivity’s. Keep living life. keep your eyes on each other, be vigilant and be prepared to help out in the awful event something does happen. Be good to each other and we will win in the end.
I address this in my American voice, but it goes for my Canadian friends as well, I’ve seen first hand the bravery and compassion they have as well. We all stand together.
Be Safe and Have Fun.
On a personal note: I am not one to advocate for war. I am not willing to send my brothers and sisters into harms way on a whim. But I have to ask myself “how much is enough?”. We let Hitler run unchecked for 2 years before we engaged Germany and we know how that turned out. We cannot allow ISIS to go unchallenged without ground troops any longer. But I understand the dilemma. If we crush ISIS then what? How long until the next threat emerges. But at this point in the current world climate I don’t think we have a choice but to act.
Lit And Loud 