One of those mornings you turn on the computer and are shocked at what you see. 
I have a cousin who lives in Belgium with her H and young children - they travel a lot. Thankful for Facebook which allows someone to share that they are safe - and my cousin and her family are safe. Shocked, but safe.
Prayer and sympathies for all in Belgium and special thoughts for anyone on CC who may have family/friends in Belgium as well.
As shocking as predictable…
Very sad, shocking, frightening, disgusting that innocent people are targeted. All as I head out to the airport for an international flight. Prayers for all world citizens who wish only to live their lives in peace.
Saddened but not the least bit shocked. Just like mass shootings in the US - this is the new normal.
Awful but sadly predictable.
My prayers go out to the people of Belgium and areas nearby. It’s scary to think of the travelers passing through that airport/metro. When we visit Europe, we wrestle enough with language and other differences during normal times, much less a time of crisis. Hoping everyone can get home, and the locals can have peace.
Saw yesterday that they had captured one of the men involved in a prior attack, so it was not a surprise. Very sad and scary though.
S is attending school in the UK this year is is supposed to be flying back from France right now. I am waiting to hear from him.
I hate to agree on something like this, but what @emilybee said is very accurate. Just this past week, multiple attacks in Turkey and now Belgium. Senseless loss of so many lives, but in the least shocking. I’m kind of worried to how people (myself included) are now reacting to this. When princess Diana died, millions across the world who did not know her cried and mourned. Now we have attacks with multiple victims, and all we do is sigh, mutter a quick prayer for the victims, and move on. We’re becoming desensitized. What a sad new normal…
It is horrible , and yet expected. I think we all know that this is going to continue .
My husband is enroute from Europe right now.my phone was dinging a lot early this morning with worried friends and family, but I know he is safe because he has wifi on the flight and we have been texting. He didn’t know until I told him.
I will be very glad to get him home
S is safely back in London but concerned about a friend’s family. Sending prayers
We’ve had terrorist attacks for as long of my life as I can remember hearing about them. Not new, just new places, new perpetrators, new victims. But not a new phenomenon.
So sad. So horrible.
I might need to start another thread, but D is all set for a 3 week language program in Germany this summer. We specifically did not let her choose to study in Bonn because we felt it was too close to the border. She is set to study either in Alzey or Ludwigshafen an Rhein. She will be with a group traveling there and then will stay in the home of a local family x 2 week to attend a German school, etc. and then will travel for a week with the group. Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated…let her go as planned? No?
Just very nervous here…
“multiple attacks in Turkey and now Belgium”
Breaks my heart to hear of more attacks. Also upsetting when the Belgian coverage is 100x the Turkey coverage.
H and I are battling colds and he woke me up in the middle of the night to ask if he took an aleve would he feel better! Seriously why does he do these things? Anyways, I looked at my phone to see the time and found out about the bombings.
So sad and like others, this is our new normal. We will visit Europe again and there is no way to either predict these things but it isn’t fun to know that this is what happens now.
When 9/11 happened we (many of us, right?) sat glued to our tv sets for hours - early in the morning, after we got the kids down for naps, bedtime, on lunch hours at work - we became disturbed, but also received information and I would say, developed compassion.
While it is not possible to do that sadly for every event now - and of course something on your “home grounds” may affect you more closely, I do think that we can take steps to do some of the same, and not just this: “Now we have attacks with multiple victims, and all we do is sigh, mutter a quick prayer for the victims, and move on.” I agree this happens! But does it happen because we desensitized or because we don’t take the time to mourn, become educated, etc.???
We have to work to avoid the “not my backyard” syndrome. Talk about it, get a little angry, shed a few tears, watch/see the people it is affecting and know their pain. And, move forward - but knowing that these events are “not ok” and we need to at the very least, truly sympathize.
How many of us have had the experience , either personal or via friends and family who were in close proximity of a terror attack ? How many of has have said / heard that they were just there the day before, their family is around the corner ?
I think this is what strikes a chord with so many…knowing that is IS in our backyard
" Breaks my heart to hear of more attacks. Also upsetting when the Belgian coverage is 100x the Turkey coverage. "
Yes, exactly…I have the same sadness for all victims of senseless terror attacks no matter where they occur. I feel like we hear a lot more about places that seem less likely to be attacked.
It does seem more likely in some parts of the world than others , and therefore maybe less shocking for that reason ?
The images of the carnage are shocking. Inside the airport, a stroller speak volumes about the innocence of the victims and the cowardice of the attackers. Stroll down to start the video
Just yesterday, GMTspouse & I were discussing scrutiny of airline crew in the context of a flight attendant at LAX bolting from the airport at a security checkpoint, ditching her size 8-1/2 Gucci shoes and 70 lbs of cocaine.
http://nypost.com/2016/03/21/flight-attendant-leaves-70-pounds-of-coke-at-tsa-checkpoint/
She could just as easily been carrying explosives.
Off-site passenger security screening will eventually come to an airport near you…
The last attack on the Brussels Airport was exactly 35 years ago on Easter Monday. I landed a few minutes before the Palestinians threw the grenades. What is so striking about this attack is that it happened at a heavily guarded airport which doubles as a military airport. The NATO headquarters are around the corner. The country was on high alert since the Abdesalam incident.
All of that to say that no place in the world is safe from the Islamist terrorists. No place!
As much as it informative to see video footage from the seconds after the attacks, including audio of people crying out in pain and anguish, does it bother anyone else that individuals’ first instincts are “I should get some footage” rather than “How can I help people?” ?