PeterDavid.net

Don't know if I really count as a regular on the site, for those with very close links to the city www.bbc.co.uk/news has the full story / updates etc.

Yesterday we had joy, today we have sorrow.

Again, condolences for all our British friends.

P.S. I'm sorry, this is a total non sequitur... but I totally knew this would be the title of PAD's entry on this subject. It is, sadly, appropriate.

My deepest sympathies to all those affected by this horror and insanity.

I thought we were supposed to be fighting them "over there" so we wouldn't have to fight them "over here"? Unless someone wants to say Britan doesn't count because it isn't America.

My sympathies and prayers for all those involved.

I thought we were supposed to be fighting them "over there" so we wouldn't have to fight them "over here"? Unless someone wants to say Britan doesn't count because it isn't America.

I am sad that it only took 4 posts to turn this into a political statement. Whether you agree or disagree with Bush and/or Blair, the people who did this are the ones to blame. They are the ones who are truly evil and who must be stopped.

Iowa Jim

I'm a very occasional commenter, but I'm fine, other than the bloody long walk home in the rain.

I'm going to side with Jim on this one. We have plenty of political threads going here, let's just keep one just for sympathies.

My heart goes out to the victims of today's bombings. I'll keep you in my thoughts.

I third Jim's post.

Take care over there, guys.

This is sad. My sympathies go out to The British people.

Not that it's needed, but I'll lend my voice to Jim's. I've often thought, while taking the train to work in Chicago, how easy it would be for a terrorist to cause massive damage. Seeing this tactic again used as a weapon drives home how vulnerable we all can be.

My prayers go out to those and their families affected by today's events.

"I third Jim's post."

I agree. All you guys, take care. I'll keep you all in my prayers also.

Where's Budgie?

I'll join in and add that I don't recall anybody (Left, Right, Middle, Extreme) saying that fighting terrorism abroad would protect anyone at home. There have been arguments over exactly how to wage that war, and who that war needs to be waged against, arguments that don't belong in this thread, but no one has suggested terrorists were predictable or controllable.

My sympathies too with all those in the vicinity, or with friends and family who are.

I'll join in and add that I don't recall anybody (Left, Right, Middle, Extreme) saying that fighting terrorism abroad would protect anyone at home.

*sigh* I really shouldn't respond to this.

Consider it a veil that was assumed to have been put up in front of the war - that if we took the war to them, they wouldn't come to us.

Obviously, we were wrong, whether it was bluntly stated or not.

This would include the motivation (after the reasoning went from WMD to terrorism) for going after Iraq.

I've expressed my sympathies once, and I'll do so again to those in London and Britain over this tragedy.

my condolonces to all londoners
and all of the british people
you are not alone we stand with you

I remember we had some spanish posters last time something like this happened.

My deepest sympathies to the British people. I've been out on a camping/rock hunting trip with my daughters and heard nothing about this until emerging from the wilderness this morning and the local donut shop had it on the TV. Unbelievable. Welcome back to civilization.

I'll post a link in the other thread, and use this one to let my sympathies be known to those in London as well.

John, Craig, come on guys. Take it up in another thread if you must.

Leave this one to condolences, worring about our British posters and miost importantly for those London posters to tell us that they are OK.

Yo John, this one is for you.

"We are fighting these terrorist with our military in Afghanistan and Iraq and beyond so we do not have to face them in the streets of our own cities."
President George W Bush

And here is where you can find the full speech this came from
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/10/20041025-4.html

Anthony: You too! Take a hint from K-nuck and take it to another thread, please!

By my count, I have to sixth Jim's post.

(In case anyone here is bored and gives a rat's tail, I did post my feelings on this more fully at SignOnSanDiego.com, in a thread entitled "We Are All Londoners". My screen name there is Irish Wolf.)

Please, guys, if you want to argue over whose "fault" the war in Iraq is, there are several other threads here for that. I'm too busy hoping that all my 'Net acquaintances in London, or visiting the city, are well...

I've only been lurking here, but the supporting comments that London has been given from around the world have been very reassuring on what has been a scarey day.

I'm old enough to remember the last years of the IRA bombing campaign, but this is something very different. I am almost permanently travelling through Liverpool Street or Russell Square - both sites of explosions. It's not until the explosion is in a place you know like the back of your hand that terrorism really hits you home. It also makes you truly appreciate the emergency services.

It's been especially scarey as the mobile phone networks simply don't have the capacity for more that 5% of users at once, so much of today has been spent trying to contact friends. The internet has been a wonderful tool for this, particularly the blogs.

Thank you all.

- A Londoner.

first as a brit i just wanna express thanks for your warm & kind words.

I myself don't live in london but i vist it regularly and i can tell you when places you've been to frequently get blown up it brings a chill to the heart.

(sorry now i'm gonna talk polatics cause at the end of the day that's what today was about)

Secondly i hope that this attack is not used to justify another invasion in the name of freedom. the enemy and yes there is an enemy number in the 10,000 of thousands scattered around the world and you don't defeat them by sending in the tanks all you do is help with their recruitment.

How to defeat them well that's a lot harder i wish i had the answear but i don't ...

One final thing this was a shocking nightmare day in london the kind you hope never to see again, in iraq however a day when "33" people are killed & hundred injured in terrorists act would be regarded as a "quite day"

that only occured to me as i was wirting this makes you realize how lucky we are

once again thanks for your support

Our condolences for all Londoners and Britans. We here in NYC can empathize with what you are going through. There is much that can be discussed about this in the larger political sphere. But here and now let me say, whatever your stance on the war, you do not deserve this and the ones responsible are the terrorist. Are thoughts are with you

Tim, Peter and all, hang in there.

What a frickin' bizarre day.

Arrived at London Waterloo this morning at 0900, and went to get my usual tube to Bank. I could have got on the train at the platform, but it was pretty much full and I decided just to wait for the next one instead of pushing on. The next one arrived, and never went anywhere as the guard announced "a power failure" occurring at my destination.

Everyone of course groaned and trundled back up the platform to find other routes. I wonder if the train actually made it to the other station without stopping, or would I have been stuck in a stuffy and overcrowded tin can for 2 hours? Of course, even that is getting off lightly compared to some unfortunate souls today.

After several aborted attempts at other tube lines and buses, I decided to walk, and eventually got to work nearly 2 hours later. It usually takes 15 minutes.

That walk was eerie - some streets mentally busy and others nearly deserted. Phone boxes with lines of people waiting because the mobile networks were overloaded.

I saw none of the scenes of destruction, but passed (and work) extremely close by.

How easily could that have been me?

Or my wife of 6 months?

Usually commuters are a grumpy lot in the morning. No-one talks to each other - our heads buried in newspapers and PAD books, or ears plugged with headphones. We get annoyed and angry when we can't pass someone walking more slowly than we are on the pavement. We "tut" and "huff" if someone has their iPod turned up too loudly.

But then, the terrorists strike. 3 tube trains. 1 bus. 37+ killed. 700+ injured. What an amazing feat of planning. What clever timing. Mission accomplished.

And suddenly, the famous British reserve disappears. We look up from our books, and take out our headphones. We offer directions to those lost. We comfort those suffering from shock. We pull together.

We care.

And you know what? The "terrorists" failed. They achieved NONE of their goals. They instilled no terror in us. I got to work. My wife got to work. Most of my frickin' office got to work too. And we will tomorrow. And all next week.

It makes me proud to be British.

Simon.

Long ago, my relatives came from England. Long enough ago that it really shouldn't matter, but I've always had a special place in my heart for the place that they left behind.

And today, that heart is crying for my 'cousins' across the pond. I can only hope, if not believe, that this is the last time such tears are shed.

Jessica
Denver, Colorado

Well I'm a very occasional poster:)

Fortunately I and everyone I know is fine. Thanks for all the goodwill from everyone on the list.

Simon, your post is lovely, and it reminds me of the changes to the New York attitude after the attack there. The shutting out of everyone else through iPods and books and newspapers, the annoyance at the slightest burp in one's daily commute are very familiar. And they, too, were discarded after that day's events.

Bless you and your family and friends. My condolences to those who have suffered through today's attack. I can't help but be reminded of that day nearly four years ago. My heart breaks for London, as it did for Madrid. I'm so sorry this happened to you in London. I really wish there was something I could do.

I'm here, I'm safe.

"I remember we had some spanish posters last time something like this happened."

Not that it really matters, but you still do have 'em. Not too many, not too regular, but we're still around here. And with an uncomfortable feeling of déjà vu, I might add.

My sympathies to all you brits over there, and my deepest condolences to anyone who's lost a significant other during today's terrorist attacks. Whether it's in London, Iraq, or anywhere.

We're all on the same side, even if we disagree with each other on how terrorism is best fought against. This is something we should never forget, specially on days like this.

As an Englishman myself (not from London, but from the Midlands which has seen it's own share of terrorist acts in its time) I just want to say to the people of London:

You have done your country proud this day. You've proven that Spirit Of The Blitz is not a myth and is not dead. Rule Britannia.

Peace!
LEE

At some point in the breakroom at work today, I thought of the British readers/posters I've seen on here, and wondered if they were all okay. I'm glad to see them checking in (here and/or on other threads) and to learn that everyone's all right. Some moving stories on here.... Best thoughts and hopes for you all

**And you know what? The "terrorists" failed. They achieved NONE of their goals. They instilled no terror in us. I got to work. My wife got to work. Most of my frickin' office got to work too. And we will tomorrow. And all next week.

It makes me proud to be British.

Simon.**

Good for you!

Then, for some bizarre, twisted reason, the scene from _Brazil_ where the deliberatly unnamed terrorists blow up part of the resturaunt and the staff responds by erecting screens around the devestation so that the uninjured partrons can continue their meals without being disturbed (in all senses of the word) comes to my mind. While stoicism can be a virtue in days like this it can be carried too far.

Chris

Condolences to the victims' friends and families,
but heartfelt appreciation to all those emergency
and rescue workers in London and everywhere else
that go out there keep the rest of us safe. Sorry that it took days like today and 9/11/01
to remind of us what you do do every single day.

London is one of my favorite cities. My wife and I visited there just last year, and used the tubes quite a bit getting 'round. You have my greatest sympathy in your hour of sadness and grief.

The things I miss by working nights and sleeping days...

My most heartfelt condolences and admiration for our brothers and sisters across the pond.

-Rex Hondo-

God Bless Simon and all the British People for their bravery and resolve in the face of this horror! As a proud Canadian I am sure I echo the thoughts of many here when I say that our prayers are with you and your stalwarts!

Very occassional poster here but also a Brit living not too far from London. However, the chaos of the city bombings was felt here too, with groups of armed police walking the streets, and traffic jams left, right & centre during the evening rush hour.

Fortunately my family & friends working in the city all checked in okay during the day, as did a work colleague who had travelled into London that morning for a meeting.

It's strange but right now I'm feeling incredibly angry, frustratingly helpless, and very very sad all at the same time.

My thanks to everyone for the kind words.

Myself, nearer to Dover than London, but my sister is in London. WEST London, thankfully.

my sincere apologies for my part the spoilage of the thread yesterday. my current news-gathering strategy apparently has some holes.

I offer my condolences and symptathies to all once again. One of my initial thoughts yesterday was of the poem by Yehuda Amichai, The Diameter of the Bomb.

It deserves, in my opinion to be posted here:

The Diameter of the Bomb

The diameter of the bomb was thirty centimeters
and the diameter of its effective range about seven meters,
with four dead and eleven wounded.
And around these, in a larger circle
of pain and time, two hospitals are scattered
and one graveyard. But the young woman
who was buried in the city she came from,
at a distance of more than a hundred kilometers,
enlarges the circle considerably,
and the solitary man mourning her death
at the distant shores of a country far across the sea
includes the entire world in the circle.
And I won’t even mention the crying of orphans
that reaches up to the throne of God and
beyond, making
a circle with no end and no God.

-- Yehuda Amichai

Everybody in London--

For what it's worth, my thoughts are with you. Good job standing up, those who can, and showing the bastards what you're made of. You are not alone.

As an occasional commenter, I'm also fine - I wasn't near any of the bombs, so the main effect on me was that I couldn't get into work (got half way, then had to turn around and come back).

Thanks to all for the kind thoughts and good wishes - life goes on (for those who weren't directly affected), and things are more or less back to normal today.

Speaking for myself, the main lesson I've learnt from this is that the mobile phone network got overloaded, so it wasn't easy to contact the other people in my division of St John Ambulance to see whether I was needed. We're now compiling a bigger list of contact details for all the brigade members, so that we can do better next time, and I'd encourage any other people in volunteer organisations to do the same.

The same thing happened here in the US on 9/11, except it was nation-wide. My then-girlfriend's brother in law worked right near ground zero, and I spent the better part of that day trying to raise him on his cell.

Wierd week...

I lived in London between '82 and '90, pretty much the heyday of the IRA bombing campaign, but been up here in Scotland for last 15 years, working in IT for a Bank in Edinburgh.

Last week, expecting trouble with G8 protestors we decided to ship half the staff to our London ofices to keep the services available and supported. I literally tossed a coin with a colleague for who went South and who stayed North.

I was in Edinburgh when 1,000 protestors trashed Princes Street and Waverly station on Monday, and on Wednesday when the same people trashed Stirling, 12 miles from where I live...

Then there was Thursday. Our London office is 200 yards from Aldgate. None of our guys hurt, everyone accounted for...

Wierd week...

TGIF!

PZ Meyers has a short post on his blog detailing why the London blast had so FEW casualties--preparedness, by building mass transit with vents, and fireproof materials.

http://pharyngula.org/index/weblog/comments/the_foresight_of_london/#continue

He also makes the point that this is something the US is falling down upon. Might be something to write your Congresscritter about.

I actually live about 250 miles north of London in Leeds, but ironically I was planning on going to the (postponed now)Queen gig in Hyde Park on Friday. Plans were to stay in a hotel I frequently use down there - right next to where the bus bomb went off.

Everyone I know is ok. London's a big city, but it's one of those occassions where everyone knows somebody who could easily have been in the midst of it.

Thanks for the chance to roll-call.

John

When September 11th happened, you guys were on our side; now it's our turn to return the favor.

Some of the best things fandom did at that time were to donate to organizations that fed, counseled, and otherwise helped the victims and their families. The 9-ll books from DC, Chaos, Dark Horse and others, Marvel's Heroes, Moment of Silence and Spiderman black cover issue among others, all of these contributed to physically helping and also repeating the important truths:

1:You are not alone.

2:We stand with you.

3:No matter what creeds, screeds, and politics divide us, all of are in this together against murder.

If anyone here wants to post or link to the organizations that provide help and how to donate, I'd appreciate it.

To Jon..

Whilst appreciating the sentiment, trying to draw too close a simile between what happened in London and 9-11 is - IMO - disproportionate.

In 9-11 they dropped planes on a massive building and killed thousands. Here, they detonated 4 bombs around the city, the death toll has yet to reach treble digits.

I don't for a second mean to trivialise that, but for anyone over thirty in London it's "been there, done that".

You probably shouldn't expect the events in London to have the same emotional impact on the nation that 9-11 had in the US.

I expect the majority of us to collectively mutter "Bastards", grieve for the dead and the bereaved, and then get on with living our lives as normally as possible, though with a return to the heightened security awareness we had throughout the '70s and '80s.

Anything else just wouldn't be British you see....

Pete, well said.
that was my thought as well, "here we go again"

I am ok. had a long walk on the day but that is nothing to really complain about especially as the walk was because I refused to go home without getting my comics!

So I walked all the way to my comic shop and back, no silly terrorist is going to stop my weekly fix of comics, the IRA tried and they failed so will these lot.