Thoughts on The Mass Shooting at a Medical Facility in Midtown Atlanta

One woman was killed, and four others were wounded in a mass shooting at Northside Hospital Medical in Midtown Atlanta this afternoon. Three of the women are in intensive care. The suspect, who had an appointment, was apprehended near Truist Park in neighboring Cobb County.

Northside Medical is situated on West Peachtree Street between 12th and 13th, less than two blocks from where I used to work during my time in Atlanta in 2020 and 2021. I occasionally walked past the building during my lunch hour. West Peachtree Street also saw violence visited upon it during a shooting at a high rise in October 2021 resulting in the death of both the victim and the suspect followed by the murder of an Atlanta attorney by her boyfriend in February 2022. 

Mind you, Midtown Atlanta is considered a safe area and West Peachtree Street is in the heart of Midtown. Nevertheless, there is a kind of danger ever present that I felt in Atlanta that I have not felt in Boston or even in New York. The closest call I had was when our building went into lockdown during a shooting at the nearby Midtown MARTA station in March 2021. There were no fatalities, but the incident came just over a week after the Atlanta Massage Parlor shootings which left 8 people dead. I remember the police sirens making their way north when I left work that day which had such an ominous sound. 

Of course, the one that hit home the most for me was the stabbing death of Kate Janness and her dog at Piedmont Park in July 2021. This occurred exactly two months after I returned to Boston, but the incident took place only two blocks from where I lived. Nearly two years later the murder is still unsolved, and the public is still demanding better surveillance in Piedmont Park. 

Mind you, I am well aware that awful things can happen anywhere at any time. Today's shooting took place at a medical facility. I remember the murder of an ER doctor at Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital in January 2015. 

Yet notwithstanding that horrific incident, it would seem there is a far greater chance of something going horribly wrong in Atlanta than in Boston and the stats would seem to back that up. With that said, there are a lot of American cities even more dangerous than Atlanta. This is not a comforting thought. Nor is the thought but for the grace of G-d go I. 

An Amusing But Comforting Thought for Michael Palin

Michael Palin of Monty Python fame announced this morning that Helen Gibbins, his wife of 57 years, had passed away following several years of chronic pain and kidney disease. 

Aside from Monty Python, Palin is remembered for his various travelogue series. In April 2000, not long after I first moved to Boston, I saw and met Palin at the Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brookline. Palin was promoting his Hemingway Travels series for PBS. I asked him question about Hemingway's relationship with Canadian writer Morley Callaghan and his work at The Toronto Star. 

Yet what I remember most about that afternoon was another question from an audience member who had asked Palin of all the places he had traveled where he would like to live. Palin replied, "I like it in London where I've lived in the same house with the same woman for the past 30 years - my wife doesn't know."

I have no doubt that everything up to the punchline was and remained true. I also have no doubt that house will never feel the same to Michael Palin ever again. My condolences. R.I.P.

Going To The Harvard Square MBTA Station Can Be Hazardous To Your Health

It would seem that going to the Harvard Square MBTA station can be hazardous to your health.

Yesterday afternoon, a woman was hospitalized after some equipment no longer in use by the MBTA gave way and fell on her. The equipment was installed in partnership with the Department of Homeland Security back in 2011 to detect biological agents but this program was discontinued two years later. The T simply hasn't bothered to remove them - until now.

This incident comes less than two months after a ceiling panel narrowly missed hitting a woman also the the Harvard Square T stop. What other hazards can be found at the Harvard Square stop? Things like this happen in threes and I'm afraid the third time might cost someone their life. 

Gordon Lightfoot, R.I.P.

I am deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Canadian folk music legend Gordon Lightfoot. He died in a Toronto hospital tonight at the age of 84. 

No cause of death was given. However, Lightfoot had cancelled his 2023 concert schedule less than three weeks ago due to health issues. In the grand scheme of things, it is remarkable that he lived as long as he did. In 2002, he survived a ruptured aortic aneurysm. 

I also remember the death hoax from 2010 in which Lightfoot had to call a Toronto radio station to assure everyone he was alive and well. I was hoping for another hoax, but it was not to be.

As with many Canadians, Lightfoot and his music held a special place in my heart. I had the privilege of seeing him in concert four times - at the National Arts Center in Ottawa in 1993, at the Orpheum Theatre in Boston in 2005, at the Shubert Theatre in Boston in 2013 and at The Town Hall in New York City in 2019 with my Dad. You can read my review of the New York concert here.

My favorite Gordon Lightfoot album is Sit Down Young Stranger (which was subsequently retitled If You Could Read My Mind). Our family had a copy of the album with its original title which I saved and is somewhere in my Dad's apartment in NYC. My favorite song that album is "Minstrel of the Dawn" which was the song which revived him from his coma after his 2002 near death experience. Sadly, the dawn did not rise tonight. R.I.P.

The Pittsburgh Pirates Are The Only Good Thing About The 2023 MLB Season So Far

Prior to Opening Day of the 2023 MLB season in late March, I indicated I would not be following the proceedings and I have not done so. 

However, I did make a few qualifications. Here is one of them:

I plan to acknowledge the winner of the World Series but won't dwell on it at length. There might be some smidgen of interest if it's something out of left field like a Baltimore Orioles-Pittsburgh Pirates World Series and we can party like its 1979. 

Well, with April come and gone, the Pittsburgh Pirates own the best record in the National League at 20-9. The return of Andrew McCutchen has brought out some good feelings and he has responded accordingly and is playing like he did when he won the NL MVP ten years ago. Then there was the feel-good story of the Bucs calling up 33-year old Drew Maggi to make his MLB debut after 13 years in the minors and responded with a couple of hits and a couple of RBIs. 

Of course, the Pirates could come back down to Earth in May. Maggi has been sent back to Double-AA Altoona. Perhaps McCutchen's legs will grow heavy. 

Then again, McCutchen might have a season for the ages and maybe Maggi will be back in September. 

I won't be following but I will keep my eye out and perhaps have a patch ready.

Bruins Unceremoniously Ousted While Celtics Playoffs Hopes Still Alive

I haven't honestly been paying much attention to Boston sports since my return to this area nearly two years ago.

However, the Boston Bruins did make headlines last night for blowing a 3-1 series lead against the Florida Panthers only to be ousted in overtime in Game 7. The first-round exit renders their NHL record single season record of 65 wins and 135 points but a footnote. 

Whatever dismay there was with the Bruins has been mitigated by the Boston Celtics beginning the NBA Eastern Conference Semi-Final against the Philadelphia 76ers. Alas, the Celtics dropped Game 1 by a score of 119-115 which is bound to make the natives restless. But the Celtics still have time to rebound.

My attention for the Bruins and Celtics is only aroused when I occasionally bump into Bruins and Celtics fans on the way to the Garden. Of the two fan bases, the Celtics are less obnoxious. The Bruins fans have too much blood in their alcohol and seem eager for a fight. At least to this point, I can put up with Celtics fans.

It's been 15 years since the Celtics last won the NBA Title. Should the Celtics win the NBA Title and if the parade is on a weekend and it is a nice warm, comfortable day then I might go. But I will cross the Mass Ave Bridge when it comes.

Several Sad & Angry Thoughts About The Massacre in Cleveland, Texas

Last Friday, five people were killed execution style at a home in Cleveland, Texas (north of Houston) including an 8-year old boy by a man after he had been told to stop shooting his gun on his property.

I want to share several sad and angry thoughts.

First, there was Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott characterizing the victims as "illegal immigrants" thus denying them their humanity. Of course, Abbott's characterization wasn't accurate. It turns out at least one of the victims had permanent resident status. But since when do Republicans let the facts get in the way of things?

Second, Abbott's characterization of the victims might very well explain the response of local authorities or lack thereof. One of the survivors of the shooting has stated he called the authorities five times to no avail. It has now been established it took authorities 20 minutes to respond. One must ask if the immigration status and/or the ethnicity of the complainants was a factor in the slow response. 

Third, the perpetrator who remains at large of this writing was deported four times. I'm sure Fox News and various right-wing media outlets will be clamoring for the wall to the built. Defeated former President Trump and the Republican Congress had their chance and did nothing. Ditto for Steve Bannon and his cronies behind We Build The Wall though they did build their financial portfolios. These people don't care about securing the border any more than they care about the people who were murdered in cold blood in Cleveland, Texas because they wanted to some peace and quiet.