Thought of the Week - What would they say?

The recent killing of five Police Officers in Dallas and several more injured, combined with the shootings of members of the public by Police officers days earlier, serves to remind us that danger can lurk around the corner where and when we least expect it.

Some would say that the gun laws in the United States serve only to fuel situations like the one described and they may be correct.

There is of course the old adage that ‘guns don’t kill people…people do’. That too is correct.

Last week I conducted a small service of remembrance at the Drill Hall for those killed during the battle of the Somme in 1916. Even 100 years on, it still proves to be an emotional and painful part of history that we wish never happened.

Violence in whatever form it takes, destroys common sense, it promotes pain and hate over gentleness and love. In the end, can we really say, with our hands on our hearts, that the unlawful death of one or many individuals actually solves anything?

If we could ask those, from both sides, who fought and died at the Somme, what would they say? If we could ask those employed to protect us, who risk their lives every day, what would they say?

I’m sure there would be differences of opinion, but ultimately, if we had a choice I wonder…what side of the fence would you sit on?