Watertown residents are relieved
to be free to roam the streets.
Alive and in custody.
What awesome video of residents applauding the first responders and the ambulance carrying "#2" as it slowly made its way through the streets of Watertown!
The last time I stayed with the TV for a straight 24 hours was 9/11/2001.
Thank goodness. Thank the first responders. Thank the everyday heroes. Thank the residents of Watertown and all of Boston suburbs who heeded warnings and trusted their public safety officers.
There were those few hours where people were told they could leave their houses, but we knew this guy was still out there. That sucked.
Then to learn their instincts were right, that he was still there, in the area, mixed feelings; somewhere between, "How did they miss him?" and "Thank goodness this will now be over and won't drag out for days or weeks or longer."
Watertown residents line
the streets and applaud
the departing police cars
Resolution.
Excellent interviews with locals, we all share their gratitude for all of the men and women of the alphabet soup of public safety.
Residents lining the streets like a parade route all evening to cheer along all of the public safety officers of all divisions and from towns all over MA as they packed up and moved out.
Boston Strong. Love that dirty water, Boston you're my home!
People, in this live streaming world we live in, had been watching this unfold all day all over the world, including my daughter who moved from a town adjacent to Watertown to live in a country in South America. She watched live streaming news on her computer, while communicating with us, her former roommates, and her childhood friends living in the neighborhoods under siege. She wanted to give her city "hugs." She told me she couldn't leave her apartment, she needed to see what happened.
Kudos to our local media for keeping track round the clock, voices going hoarse.
One local reporter, Adam Williams with WHDH an NBC affiliate, while in the area with his photographer, became trapped in the middle of a gunfight with no where to hide but behind parked cars all the while on the phone reporting from the scene.
This is the packaged version of that ordeal and this is longer
uncut live report where Williams was reporting on the phone while the live shot of other scenes were shown - his photographer shot video that was eventually packaged with the audio.
And last night as he was covering the celebration in Watertown, people were coming up to him and giving him hugs.
Only last night did I switch over to MSNBC and hear the national perspective, the researched background on Chechnya and an explanation about why the brother's uncle says his nephews have shamed not only the family but the peaceful Chechen people.
And we will be following the victims. In the next few weeks some of the injured and those who sprang into action amid the horror will surely appear on the morning and evening news and talk shows. They all have survival stories to tell.
I know I'll be following all of the stories.
Our President provided comfort Thursday and again last evening. He reminded us why we are so proud of our city and commonwealth. He also shared a concern about the aftermath.
Please, with all of the suffering throughout this whole horrific ordeal, the injuries, the deaths - regardless of whatever motivated these brothers to become terrorists - we cannot, must not, lay this at the -feet of the Muslim community. They were there with us - because they are part of us throughout the whole ordeal with an added set of their own concerns. Let's support them as they suffer the same way we all do. I wrote about this in an early diary - Thursday:
Boston bombing: concerns among some in the Muslim community
First thoughts on Monday:
Boston, you're my home
Remember the victims - those lost and their families who mourn and those who are in for a long road to recovery:
Boston Bombing: Newlyweds face new challenges together; each lost a leg
Boston Bombing: Man who lost both legs looked bomber in the eyes
Boston bombing: Along with the loss of their son, family suffers serious injuries
Third victim of Boston Marathon Bombing was Chinese National
Two brothers each lose a leg in Boston Marathon bombing
Boston Marathon bombing victims names and faces
And the ordeal:
LIVE BLOG: Boston bombing suspects: One killed one at large- explosives concerns city paralyzed
UPDATED- possible arrest in Boston bombing
WHDH photos of a package and explosion at Boston Marathon
Boston's innocence lost and several Sandy Hook families were there
Two heros.
And now we begin our own long recovery which for many of us involves waiting for answers to questions.
How?
When?
And, again, most important, WHY?
On writing, blogging, sharing, during a crisis.
I've learned a lot more about KOS the past few days and the way it all functions.
Some good, some not-so-good. I am still only a freshman here.
The members here are wonderful, it is so comfortable to be hanging out in the left corner of a crowded room. Writing here is such a great outlet.
For the most part those who want to actually write in the style of journalism on these pages are using news sources written by journalists who in turn use their own sources "on the street." Sometimes blog sources have several degrees of separation from that reporter on the street ....
But even the most trusted journalists make mistakes and trust the right sources for the wrong information. And, we in turn trust them. That happened at least once this week and for one afternoon, we believed the ordeal might be coming to an end. We wanted to believe it.
How that happened and what it means is the subject for another post.
And, that piece of this five-day story didn't do the kind of damage early misreporting by news outlets who clearly didn't use a trusted source on the ground - more like rumors circulated in 140 characters or less. - did to a couple of local high school kids.
Regardless, I believe that the most important part of using blogs as both the resource for news and a source for "reporting" is citation, citation, citation. Give it if you use it as a source or consider the citations it if you want to trust a story as real "news."
As they say, be a smart consumer of information. And, give credit to the people who have done work.
And there is nothing wrong with citing a blogger who has already gathered resources and put time into a post.
I hope people who post to KOS will keep the victims of this crime remembered in the their diary pages.
I gotta get back to the neglected business at hand, it's been a long 5 days. And, then I gotta get a job, I've been thinking about whether I'd want to commute to Boston, could I find a job that would only require commuting a few days a week? I've wanted to be back in the city.
I've decided to shift the focus to Boston, throw out a line, see what happens.
This week made me realize that as much as I've grown to dislike the cold weather in my native commonwealth and have been contemplating a move south, I am even more fond, proud and downright attached to its quirky mix of people and its character and the center of its energy, our city of Boston.
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