http://www.lectlaw.com/files/cur52.htm
34. Words mean things.
I keep seeing this horrifying crime referred to as a tragedy, and I think its important to set the record straight.
“Hamlet”, “Macbeth”, “Romeo and Juliet”, “King Lear”, “Titus Andronicus” and others are all tragedies.
Gunning down a Federal Judge, a nine year old girl, a US Congress Member and a whole bunch of other people is an atrocity.
While the deaths and severe injuries are no doubt tragic to the people involved, that does not make this event a tragedy, as that garners too much sympathy and lays the groundwork for some acceptable excuse at some future date. There are no words to justify or ameliorate this attempted assassination, or mass murder, or vicious attack by a deranged maniac; or any other way we can find to describe this horrifying act, but I believe we should avoid the temptation to buttonhole this as a mere “tragedy”.
(My comments are not aimed at you personally either...just a comment about how we all fall into these language habits so easily.)
“Gunning down a Federal Judge, a nine year old girl, a US Congress Member and a whole bunch of other people is an atrocity.”
Bingo.
I’ve long been sickened by people calling 9/11 a “tragedy” - from the get-go, and almost 100% of the time.
It was an ATROCITY.
Katrina was a tragedy. Human-perpetrated carnage is an ATROCITY.