What Happened At The Boston Marathon: Some Can’t-Miss Opinions You Need to See

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On a day of strength and courage, a cowardly attack

“The ugliest acts can bring out the best in people. Some runners ran right into the Massachusetts General Hospital to donate blood for the bomb victims. They gave all they had for 26 miles, then found more to give from the well of goodwill.”

Boston Marathon has lost its innocence

“I’m not a marathon runner. I don’t intend to ever run one. But I love the Boston Marathon. I love the imagery of it. I love the competition. I love the fact that numerous friends and some family members have raced in the sport’s biggest event. It would be like me, as a cyclist, getting to ride the Tour de France. Or a golf fan playing in the Masters. My wife is both a runner and a running coach. She knows what the Boston Marathon means to her athletes. It will never be the same.”

Terrorism in Boston — we’ve been here before

“It was a moment celebrating the things so many of us hold dear: sportsmanship, competition, community. … A perfect day at one of America’s iconic sporting events, the Boston Marathon. In a flash, and a column of smoke, all of it disappeared. Screams replaced cheers, carnage overtook accomplishment. Fifteen seconds later, another explosion two blocks away. And three hours later, a somber American president was standing before TV cameras, vowing justice. Haven’t we been here before?”

With blood on our streets, FDA should lift ban on gays giving blood

“As an American, I am proud of our ability as citizens to look past ourselves to help in times that are bigger than ourselves. But what about the numerous Americans who want to help, but aren’t allowed to? … I truly hate to diverge the spotlight from the Boston victims. However, the truth of the matter is they need our help — all of our help — but our current laws ban sexually active gay men from donating their blood. This is blood that could be crucial in helping save the lives of Boston victims. … According to CNN, blood donations were falling last summer with almost a 10 percent decline nationwide. I can’t help but wonder, as the article does too, if lifting the ban on blood donations from gay men would help stall that decline.”

To learn more about what happened at the Boston Marathon, see bystanders’ six unique vantage points here.

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