It seems to me that the American tragedy is a vastly bigger example of the sort of thing I deal with on a daily basis. I will not name my town, but here the weak or undefended are seen as fair game for all manner of bullying. Old ladies robbed or raped in their homes or in the streets; youths throwing concrete blocks off bridges; young men knifed after a night at the pub; theft and vandalism everywhere; daily jeering and menacing behaviour in the street; public amenities wrecked. And it seems that decent people are powerless to act against a minority who have absolutely no scruples. Our culture of freedom and gentleness has allowed them to move about at will committing their crimes in places where they are not recognised and get away with it. Even if they are caught they are scarcely punished. In parts of the town neighbours are getting together to fence off areas against strangers and this helps. There has also been a revivial of suggestions here in U.K. that everyone should carry an identity card. Can't see anything wrong with that myself, but civil rights groups disagree. It seems to me that we have all just got too big, and somehow we need to break ourselves down again into smaller units where everyone is recognised and accountable. We have the technology right here with the internet; we don't need to work in huge buildings any more. By the way, I don't mean to diminish the American tragedy, I have hardly stopped crying, but a death is a death, whether it is in the company of thousands, or alone in a back alley and on the personal level just as grievous.