Remembrance...

Sri Lanka celebrated her 60th Anniversary of Independence the day before yesterday. Here is Prabhakaran's gift to the nation: 

Bomb Blast at Fort Railway Station

Death Toll  rises; nine schoolchildren killed. 

Last rites for Slain Baseball Team Today.

Tigers and tears have no regard for race.

I have many friends from D.S Senanayake College. I can't imagine what they must be going through. It could very easily have been any of my own friends on that platform. It could have been me.

This was the terrorist group that George Bush, Eric Solheim and Ranil Wickramasinghe wanted to make us to make peace with. George Bush announced his stand while he was dropping bombs on Afghanistan hoping to hit at least Osama Bin Laden's pet dog, if he had one, and Ranil Wickramasinghe bought peace talks to the table only months after the Tigers reclaimed the Elephant Pass, killing over a 1000 Sri Lankan soldiers. I wish it were their dead bodies on that platform instead of innocent school kids. 

Who is the LTTE?

You don't negotiate with monsters. You hunt them down and kill them until there isn't a single one of them left to spawn another. 

I don't believe there is a God, because if there is, animals like these wouldn't be allowed to live. 

Oh. My. God.

Gunfire! From all sides! All the army personnel are leaving their posts and running and driving off down Galle Road. What the fuck?! What's going on?

It's the first time I've heard actual gunfire. They sound disappointingly like fire crackers, only louder, longer and more persistent. Kind of a rat-a-tat sound. 

Last month I heard a bomb, this month I hear gunfire. I guess I really am living in a war zone.

The thing about living smack dab in the middle of Colombo is that you have no idea where any sound is coming from. It could be anywhere from the Colombo Harbour to the President's Mansion. 

Jeebers. You'd think we were living in Vavuniya or something. I hope our boys are all right. I pass many of them at the security check points down the road, and know some of them by sight.

Please don't let any man or woman die for their country tonight.

ETA: Damn, but it sounds like a fully-fledged shoot-out! They were quiet for almost an hour and now it's starting again. And they sound so close too, although they are probably miles away. If they were so close the gunfire would be ear-splitting. Still nothing on the news. WTF is happening? Why are they firing like that at intervals? Why is the media in this country so useless? Aargh!

Thank you for your prayers and thoughts, guys. Looks like we'll need it tonight. Please let everybody be safe in their homes tonight and not out in the streets.