Pandora's Aquarium: Colorado - Pandora's Aquarium

Life can change in an instant, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worst. It is unfortunate that tonight I write about the worst. I would like to start with a quote. Harriet Beecher Stowe said, “The bitterest tears shed over graves are for words left unsaid and deeds left undone.” What truth this has. As I write this tonight, exactly 24 hours after the largest massacre in United State’s history. I may not be Canadian but this has hit me hard. At 4:27 am I was just getting ready for bed, after watching a movie and losing track of time. Just as I was getting into bed my cellphone vibrated, alerting me of a text. This was an alert from Twitter, specifically from AM980News, a local radio station from London, Ontario. The message said “BREAKING: as many as 10 people have been shot and killed at a ‘Dark Knight Rises’ film premiere in Aurora, Colorado – Reuters.”

My first thought was “Oh my God, how could somebody do this?” My second thought was about those who were killed. I briefly wondered if there had been any film stars present as for some reason I thought this was a red carpet event, not that this matters, either way what occurred was horrible, something that should not have to be lived through. I found it hard to sleep after that, questioning just what was happening. Reports continued to flood in on my phone but everywhere that I looked online I could not find any information, CNN hadn’t had anything posted, Fox, Yahoo and other sites gave no information either. It wasn’t until I woke in the morning that I learned the extent of what happened, with 12 people losing their lives for a senseless act of violence.

My heart hurts today for the family and loved ones of the 12 who have perished as well as those men, women, and children who bared witness to this horrific act. No one should have to live, or experience something such as this. I wish to express my deepest sympathies for those who have fallen victim to this sick individual. Not only are those who were wounded/killed are the victims, but the witnesses are as well. I can only imagine the amount of therapy that those who were present will need. I call this man a sick individual because that is exactly what he is, I do not believe that he was sick in the mentally, and he sure as hell didn’t have the flu. I’m not quite sure how to word what it is that I am trying to say here other than the fact that he is a sick man. Not even a man, he is scum, less than scum, I don’t have a word for what he is. As a film student this leaves me more distressed than ever, one of the few places that I call a safe haven has now been invaded and now I only see tragedy when I think of the theatre.

I want to end with another quote, spoken by Christopher Nolan himself about this tragedy. “The movie theatre is my home, and the idea that someone would violate that innocent and hopeful place in such an unbearably savage way is devastating to me. 
”

Ps: I wrote this last night with no intention to post it, I have however decided that I needed to.