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The defining characteristic of any tragedy is the inability to make any sense of it. Thus, the term "senseless violence."
We are led to believe that everything happens for a reason, and when a tragedy on the scale of the Paris attacks occurs we must all try and ferret out a reason behind the tragedy, be it spiritual, ideological or otherwise.
Before we can move on with our lives, we must know why they have been affected so.
The phrase "random act of violence" exists, but it is a lie. It is in our nature as humans to believe that nothing happens by pure chance. That's what has made the Paris attacks so hard to comprehend for some people. When you sit down in a cafe for some wine and a suicide bomber detonates himself next to you, or when you go to watch a concert and your life ends with a bullet in the head, that can't be random. There must be some reason, some divine providence, behind it all.
The best way to combat tragedies like this, to erase them (however much we can) from our psyche, is with a direct, measured response. We may not be able to figure out the "why" of the tragedy, but we can easily figure out the "why" of the response. In cases like this, the volume and the emotion of the response can inadvertantly give you the "why" of the tragedy.
No community has been more vocal about supporting the victims of the Paris attacks than the soccer community. It's fitting, as some of the attacks happened right outside a Germany-France friendly. One of the suicide bombers even tried to get into the Stade de France, but was kept outside, where he blew himself up.
Perhaps the part of the footballing community most affected has been, unsurprisingly, Paris Saint-Germain. As the biggest club close to the attacks, the Parisiens have been looked upon by the rest of the community for cues on how to act, how to sympathise, how to grieve.
Paris Saint Germain, then, released videos letting Paris know that the soccer community will not let them suffer alone.
Je suis Paris. Je suis le football.
(H/T Sports Illustrated)
Contact The18 Staff Writer Sam Klomhaus at Klomhaus@The18.com or follow him on Twitter @SamKlomhaus
