I do. To say that there are those who weren't sympathetic to the victims of Gatlinburg does not allow civilized people to follow suit.
The people in this fire are victims of a government that embraces their freedom. Then it is an excuse to look the other way when necessary laws for health and safety are ignored. It's exploitation and who benefits? Contractors and others who benefit from gentrification.
The interview this AM on GMA with the person who rented and managed the building was heart rendering. Matt and his posse were asking him all kinds of questions to blame him. He was trying to explain that his goal was an environment where his peers could have a place to be, made as safe as he knew how.
How does one explain the fire station being a block away yet the building having people living there and coming and going? Could it be that the city was way too satisfied with not having them on the streets demanding appropriate housing?
Do I approve of their lifestyle? Of course not. Do they deserve to die because they're left on their own not getting normal protections afforded most city residents? Of course not.
That was one of the most painful interviews I’ve ever seen. Very difficult to watch.
I don’t understand this about being “on the streets demanding appropriate housing” and “not getting normal protections afforded most city residents.” If they want “appropriate housing,” the thing to do is to seek it out and PAY for it, not demand that someone else give it to them. Too expensive? Then move to a less-expensive community. No doubt “most city residents” pay for their own places—places that are required to meet safety codes if their residents are ordinary people (i.e., not the “creative” type). If you’re talking about fire department service, there’s not a lot that even a nearby fire department can do for a dry old wooden building filled with paint and solvents but no sprinklers or smoke detectors.
Thank you for injecting some sober civility into this discussion. At Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge and Oakland, imperfect (and which of us ARE perfect?) people suffered horrifying death by fire and smoke, all of them as their respective exits from this vale of tears, some in transition to an eternal version of smoke and flame.
The Christian standard is to hate the sin but love the sinner. Celebration of such tragedies happening to anyone is never in order, as you recognize.
2CAVTrooper:
Caring comes at little cost. When I pray each night, I can pray for something more valuable to each of them than anything that can be bought with money: that Almighty God have mercy on each of their immortal souls. You can do that too and should. God will do what is right and what is good in each instance as He understands so much better than any of us. When the time comes, perhaps He will grant that divine mercy to you and to me.